Trapped In A Box
by Bec-Bec
Summary: Raines knows about Jarod and Parker, now what's gonna happen? Chapter 9 is up!!... Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked in a warehouse and...well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.
1. Tears and Shattered Glass

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Trapped In A Box

By Bec Bec

Chapter 1

**Tears and Shattered Glass**

"I'm Gone." It was remarkable how much those two words changed her entire life. How they could manage to create a feeling of anger, horror, abandonment, fear, and a whole range of other emotions just by themselves. And all because she wouldn't offer him the three words he wanted to hear. All because she wouldn't let herself admit the truth to her heart.

"Damn him," Ms. Parker whispered to herself, "Damn him and his stupid clues and his stupid turning points, and his stupid card that say's 'I'm gone.' I wish he were dead. I wish…" She couldn't even keep going because her voice was choked out by the sobs that wracked her body. She took the glass of vodka she was holding and threw it against the wall. It didn't shatter, so she picked it up and threw it again, until the glass shards rained down to the floor as it smashed into a thousand pieces, a thousand pieces of her broken life. She curled up on the floor and cried herself to sleep as every horrible thing that had ever happened in her life filled her thoughts, each bringing on its own bout of tears.

In the morning, she woke up lying among the pieces of shattered glass. She mindlessly began to sweep them into a pile with her hands, ignoring as they began to slice into the palms of her hands, leaving them dotted and streaked with blood. The phone rang and she pulled herself up from the floor quickly, hoping it was the one person she most desperately needed to talk to. "Hello," she mumbled into the phone.

"Did you just say hello?"

"Oh, it's you," she answered into the phone as Broots voice echoed out at her, "What do you want, Broots?" she said, transforming her voice into the cold and formal tone that she usually used.

"We found Jarod."

The shock of what she'd just heard prevented her from responding and Broots wondered is she had been cut off.

"Ms. Parker, are you there?"

"Call Sydney, I'll meet you at the Centre." She abruptly hung up on him.

****

A Warehouse in Los Angeles

Ms. Parker, Sydney, and Broots had just pulled up, or rather, screeched to a stop because of Ms. Parker's manic driving, when an alarm began sounding.

"What's that noise?" Ms. Parker demanded of Broots.

"W-Well, it could be a lot of things. It might be a signal for a shift change, a fire alarm, a…"

"Broots what's the noise!?" Ms. Parker cut him off.

"A-An alarm."

"Great, Wonder Boy's trying to escape once again, using something loud as a distraction. But, I'm gonna get him this time, I can feel it."

"Ms. Parker, perhaps this new aggression you have towards Jarod is…" Sydney was cut off by Ms. Parker.

"Cram it, Syd. I didn't ask for a shrink session. Now, come on."

They exited the car and Ms. Parker noticed the door to the building was mechanically preparing to seal itself. She ran forward, with her gun cocked, as Sam and two other sweepers followed quickly, but she was the only one who managed to squeeze through the gap before the door clicked into place. She turned around and pulled on the door's massive handle, but it wouldn't budge.

"Great, I'm trapped in Wonder Boy's newest lair all alone," then she let the coldness leave her voice and shed her Centre persona, since no one was watching anymore. "I wonder if he's still here."

Just as she stepped away from the door, the lights in the building went out.

"Lost in the dark, great." She slid her gun into the back waistband of her pant suit and crept along the wall until she saw a red emergency light on the wall, opposite what appeared to be a staircase to a lower level of the building. She descended the stairs and when she was halfway down, she heard a voice come form the darkness.

"Ms. Parker."

Quick as a whip, her cold Centre persona was back in place, "Who'd you expect, Lab Rat? Santa Claus?" She quipped as she finished descending the stairs and came to the floor.

"Of course not, who would ever link a symbol of childhood joy with the Centre?" Jarod said, emerging from the shadows.

"I suppose you concocted this little lockdown."

"No, as a matter of fact, I did not. I thought the Centre did, after all, locking me away has been their goal for the last…hell, for my entire life."

"The Centre would never plan to lock me in here with you because they know I'd shoot their precious pretender right in the head if no one was around to stop me."

"Would you?" Jarod asked, half full of hope and half full of anger…if such a thing is possible. His eyes pleaded with her to say "no" and yet his mouth was held in a firm line as though he expected the answer to be "yes."

Ms. Parker walked toward him, and pulled her gun out. He noticed and began to back into the shadows, preparing to run. But she tossed the gun away, into the blackness.

"No."

He walked back toward her and pulled her into a long overdue embrace.

Ms. Parker hadn't been hugged in a long time and hesitated at first, before giving in to his strong arms. Then, he pulled her away far enough to look down into her eyes.

"Parker, wh…" he didn't get any further in his question because she had pulled his head down and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

She pulled back and stared deeply into his eyes. Then, she pushed him backwards, hoping to meet a wall, but instead causing them to fall onto his bed, which had been hidden in the darkness. She landed on top of him and he pulled her closer to himself.

"Barely five minutes and we're already on my bed. Do you want to slow down?"

"No," Ms. Parker whispered. "We've been going slow long enough."

She kissed his forehead and then down along the bridge of his nose until she met his mouth. Again, she kissed him softly. He pulled her in tighter and she smiled against his mouth, allowing his tongue to explore her mouth. But then, he pulled back.

"It can't happen this way, I'm sorry," he turned his head away.

There was hurt in her eyes and she quickly covered it with her usual curtness.

"What, am I not good enough for you, Lab Rat? Had your taste of the Ice Queen and decided it wasn't to your liking?" She pushed herself up off of him and began to walk back to the stairwell. She was three steps up, with her back facing him, before he said anything.

"Parker, that's not what I meant," he said, getting up and standing at the end of the bed.

"And what did you mean, Jarod? What could you possibly have meant?" her voice cracked. The idea that she had finally come to him and he had turned away broke her heart into a million pieces, just like the glass from the previous night. She almost smiled in spite of herself at the thought that she actually had a heart…how had she let herself be so weak?

"I need to know, Parker, are you going to leave the Centre?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"It has to do with everything. Are you going to leave the Centre?" he asked again.

She turned her head slightly so she could just see him out of the corner of her eye, "I don't know." She said softly. "I don't know."

"I was serious, Parker, I'm ending the chase."

"Then why'd you let us find you?"

"Because, I had to try one more time. I had to ask you just once more if you would come."

She turned all the way around to face him, "So, you did plan for the doors to lock us in."

"No…I didn't. I just took it as a sign. I don't know who pulled the alarm."

She could tell that he wasn't lying. He never lied to her…so, she couldn't lie to him anymore. "Ask me."

"Ask you what?"

"The question you've had hidden for the last six years, but has been burning inside of you. Ask me."

"Parker…will you leave the Centre and come away with me?"

She walked back down the stairs and back to where he was standing. "Yes."

They stood in silence, neither one really believing she had just said yes.

"Parker?"

"What?"

"Did you just say yes?"

"Yes."

He couldn't stand not touching her for a minute longer, and pulled her to him. He had one arm looped around her waist, and the other slid up her waist and to the side of her face. She slid both of her arms around the back of his neck. They both just stood there, staring into each others eyes, happy just to be next to one another, happy to be with the person they loved most in the world.

Jarod finally broke the silence.

"Parker?"

"What?"

"Will you…"

"Yes."

He pulled her back with him, and again, they were lying on the bed. He spun them around and Ms. Parker pulled Jarod down to her. Their tongues explored each other's mouths. Then, Jarod pulled away.

"What?" Ms. Parker asked.

"I love you."

Ms. Parker pulled Jarod's shirt off and then lowered his head down to her chest, to whisper in his ear, "I love you too."

He unbuttoned her shirt while kissing her neck in the little hollow of her collarbone.

The undressing process continued slowly, as they kissed passionately.

They made love in the same fashion, slow and full of passion. For all of the times in the past when they had argued. For all of the times they had nearly died. For all of the times they hadn't said, "I love you." And, for all of the times they knew they did love one another. Their breathing slowed as they drifted off to sleep, still holding each other closely, not willing to let go of everything they had just found. The fact that they were trapped in a building was lost to them because, they were lost in each other.

****

Outside the Warehouse, Ms. Parker's Centre Issue Car

"I hope Ms. Parker's okay in there," Broots said worriedly.

"You can't override the system?" Sydney asked, full of worry.

"No. I don't have the proper key codes to unlock the door mechanism. It's strange that they locked in the first place. What kind of warehouse is this?"

"I don't know, but we'll have to find out."

"My laptop can't do much from here, Syd, I'm going to need to get into their security office."

"I don't know where that is."

"We'll have to investigate…" Broots said worriedly. He hated investigating because it almost always meant he went somewhere he didn't want to go and found something he really didn't want to find. That was the problem when you worked at the Centre, when you finally found the truth, you really wished you hadn't.

They climbed out of the car. "We should take Sam, Broots, I have no idea what any of this means and it may be dangerous."

"That's what I'm worried about."

Sam, Broots, and Sydney walked all the way around the perimeter of the building, checking each of the doors as they went along. They finally came to what appeared to be a small office, off of the main building. The door was locked, but Sam kicked it open. In his world, there was no time for picking the lock. He was worried for Ms. Parker's safety and that meant he had to find the quickest and easiest way to make sure she was safe. That's what made him her best sweeper, even if she never told him that he was.

Once inside the office, Broots could see that it was, in fact, the security office. There was a long row of computers, but the screens were all blank and the only light entering the room came from the doorway.

"The power must have been cut. What's going on?"

That's when he saw it, a piece of paper with the Centre letterhead on it, lying on the floor.

"Syd, come look at this."

"What is it Broots?" the older gentleman came over and took the paper from Broots outstretched hand. Sydney looked at the letterhead, "This building belongs to the Centre?"

Author's Note: I have practically no idea where I'm taking this. Anyone have any suggestions? I just sat down and started writing. I hope that the Ms. P and Jarod love scene wasn't too Lifetime movie of the week. I really tried but I'm a complete romantic at heart. Please Review!!!


	2. Penlights On Hidden Maps

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. By the way, if there is a company called Chief Shipping, I apologize for the use of their name because I didn't even know that they existed…if they do. It may be that it's just an imaginary company that exists within my head which imports and exports thought processes…hmm. I also do not own Mighty Mouse…in fact, I don't know who does.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: Um, I made up the pretend in New York that Jarod mentions in here. Realistically, he had to have done far more pretends than we know about. Hope the concept isn't too farfetched. I personally think that Jarod would make a very funny mime…but my humor is often lost on others.

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 2

**Penlights On Hidden Maps**

"Syd, what do you mean the building is owned by the Centre?"

"Look, the address of this building is printed next to the Centre logo."

"Do you think the Centre set this up to hurt Ms. Parker?"

"I don't know, with the Centre, anything is possible. They may just be holding her here to keep her from finding something else that is going on."

"You mean a diversion."

"Yes, it wouldn't be unlike the Centre. It resembles the time that they locked down the Centre to attempt to murder Mr. Parker."

"So, what are we going to do?"

"Well, I suppose we'll have to check the Centre's databases to see what's going on."

"Okay, but Syd, there's no power on these computers."

"Well, I suppose we'll have to find the electricity breaker."

"Um, where's that?"

"How should I know, Broots?"

"Lucky guess?"

"I presume that it's in the basement of the building, but obviously, we've been sealed out of the building."

Sam, who had been standing silently by the door during this entire exchange, suddenly interjected, "Excuse me, sirs, but there's a map of the warehouse on that wall over there." He pointed to a rather large color-coded map on the back wall of the office. The light coming from the doorway just happened to fall in a line across a bright red marker, which said, "you are here."

"Thank you, Sam," Sydney said to the sweeper. Then, he turned back to Broots and raised his eyebrows at him. Broots just blushed a little and ducked his head. Sydney pulled a small penlight out of his shirt pocket, "Here, Broots."

Broots took the penlight and he and Sydney investigated the map.

The warehouse had three levels, one above ground, and two below.

"Syd, what kind of work do you think the Centre does here?"

"If they wanted someone to know, I'm sure they would have put up a big sign declaring what their purpose was. I didn't even know the Centre had a building in Los Angeles. I know we've got facilities in London, Tokyo, and Dublin, and there were rumors of branches in Australia and Germany, but I assumed Blue Cove was the only office in America."

Sam cleared his throat, "Actually, there's a sign on the front of the building that says _Chief Shipping_ on it."

This time, Broots raised his eyebrows at Sydney who simply glared back at him.

"Thank you, Sam," Sydney answered.

Broots returned his eyes to the map, "A shipping company as a front, how unoriginal. You know, there are about a million movies in which shipping companies are used to illegally smuggle things into the country and…"

Sydney cut Broots off, "Broots, what does the map say?"

"Well, there are seven entrances into the building."

"I only remember seeing five doors."

"That's because one is a roof access door and the other is an underground entry."

"Underground? Where?"

Broots walked into the center of the room and pulled back a plastic mat on the floor, "Right here."

"Okay, Sam, you check the roof access door and Broots and I will investigate this entrance."

Sam exited the office and Broots pulled on the handle of the trap door, but it wouldn't budge. "Syd, it won't open."

"Perhaps it's locked," he leaned down to give Broots a hand, and after some very forceful pulling, the door opened. 

There was a soft glow of red light coming from below, which just barely illuminated the rungs of a ladder. Broots leaned in, stuck his head through the hole, and pointed the penlight around, but the ladder went down too far and the penlight was too weak to reveal what exactly the black depth concealed.

Broots gulped, "Well, here we go." He lowered himself into the hole and began climbing down the ladder. His hands were sweaty, and his hands slipped as he nervously went farther and farther down into the blackness.

Sydney watched as the younger man receded into the murkiness, and followed him closely, making sure that the door was propped open and wasn't going to slam shut on them.

When they reached the bottom, they could see that the red light was an emergency back-up powered light. The walls of the corridor were made of large grey stones. It smelled faintly of mold, and there was a barely audible dripping noise in the background. The corridor extended in both directions, but they went down the one which went in the direction of the warehouse. 

Broots wondered what was concealed at the other end of the hall, but decided it was better not to investigate, who knows what he may have found. Thoughts of horror movies involving Frankenstein-like creatures hidden in dungeons came to mind, and he shivered at the thought. He wouldn't put it past some of the people who worked at the Centre to create monsters, not after what he'd seen over the years.

They walked about a hundred feet before they came across a door. Broots turned the knob and the door gave way easily. Inside of the small room, the walls were covered with circuit breakers, covered with little switches and various colored wires. There was another door on the other side of the room, but it was one of the doors which had sealed shut when the alarm went off, and when Sydney pulled on the handle, it wouldn't budge.

"Well, Broots, it looks like all we can do for now is turn the power back on."

Broots was already examining the panels with the miniscule amount of light that the penlight could muster, "Uh, Syd, these wires were cut. The lights didn't go off when the alarm did."

"What do you mean?"

"Someone definitely wanted Ms. Parker trapped in this warehouse."

"I wonder why? Can you fix it?"

"I can try, but these wires are tricky, if they aren't twisted together correctly, the whole system can completely go out and never start up again."

"Broots, you've done this a million times, I have complete faith that you know what you are doing."

Broots didn't look as sure as Sydney did, but began to gather together the cut wires. He pulled out the multi-use pocketknife he always carried with him, and flipped out the little set of pliers. He began connecting red to red, green to green, yellow to yellow, blue to blue, white to white, and black to black, but he ended up with three yellow wires.  
"Uh oh."

"What?" Syd questioned.

"There are three yellow wires."

Sydney frowned, "Well, I guess you'll just have to pick two."

"I don't understand how this happens. Every time I try to reconnect wires, there's always an extra one. Who wired these buildings? Why on earth would you need a wire that doesn't do anything?"  
"I don't know, Broots. I suppose it's one of the great mysteries of the world."

"You mean like how when you wash socks, four socks go in, and only three come back out? What happened to the other sock? Did the washing machine eat it, or…"

Sydney cut Broots off, "Broots, we can discuss the mysteries of the world another time. I know that you don't want to incur Ms. Parker's wrath when she discovers you've left her in there any longer than she has to be because you wanted to talk about socks."

"Right," Broots turned his attention back to the wires. "Eenie meenie minie moe, oh, screw it." He twisted two of the wires together randomly and squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for the oncoming explosion, but nothing happened. A whirring noise started as the ventilation fans kicked back on, and the lights flickered on, one by one. "Hah, it must be my lucky day."

"Good job, Broots," Sydney patted him on the back. Then, he walked over to the sealed door and pulled on the handle again. The door still didn't budge.

"The doors must be on a different system," Broots commented, "We'll have to check from the computers in the security office."

The two men exited the little room and walked back into the corridor. Now that the power was back on, you could see a variety of pipes running along the ceiling of the hall. One of them had a leak and the water trickling out of it had left a mossy trail on the left-hand wall. When they came back to the ladder, the door on top was flipped shut.

"Syd, I thought you propped that door open."

"I did."

Broots crawled up the ladder and pushed against the door, but it wouldn't move. "Uh, Syd, I think we're gonna be here for a while." He climbed back down the ladder. "Did I mention that I don't like being in enclosed spaces for long periods of time?"

"I never knew you were claustrophobic."

"Um, yah, well, I am."

Sydney sighed, "I don't know what's going on, but I certainly hope that Ms. Parker is okay."

****

Inside of the Warehouse

Jarod stroked Ms. Parker's bare back as she slept with her head resting on his chest.

He couldn't believe everything had happened so fast. Ms. Parker had agreed to leave the Centre for him, something he never believed she would do. And now, here they were. They had made love in a warehouse, not his choice of a romantic backdrop, but he'd take Parker anyway and anywhere she would let him have her. Her eyelids fluttered in her sleep.

"Parker," Jarod whispered. He didn't receive a reply, so he leaned down and kissed the top of her head. Then he moved his lips close to her ear, "Parker." 

She moved her hand until her fingers found his and laced them through each other, "I heard you before," she mumbled.

"Oh, good, I'm hungry. Do you want something to eat?"

"Mmm…" she didn't open her eyes, "Sure, as long as it's not just pez, pop tarts and ice cream."

"Oh, Parker, that's the best stuff to eat."

"It has no nutritional value whatsoever."

"So? It tastes good. Wait, I forgot, the refrigerator power probably went out when the power turned off."

Ms. Parker opened her eyes and propped her chin up on his chest so she could look at him, "Oh yah, I forgot we were locked in here."

Jarod frowned, "Me too," he reached up the hand that wasn't held in hers and brushed some of her hair back behind her ear, "I suppose we should investigate."

Ms. Parker smiled at him, " I suppose so."

She rolled over, letting go of Jarod's hand, and grabbed one of Jarod's shirts off of the floor, "Mind if I borrow this? It's more comfortable than my suit and it smells so much better."

"Nope, go ahead. But, I think you smell amazing."

"Hah." She slipped the shirt over her head and looked down at the picture silk-screened on the front, "Hmm…Mighty Mouse."

"Yah, I got that while I was on a pretend in New York."

"Which one was that?"

"I think I left you a box of Sugar O's and a color change spoon from that Pretend," Jarod said as he pulled his boxers and jeans on.

"Ah, one of your many gifts meant to remind me of the little girl trapped inside fighting to get out."

"Exactly. Plus, the spoon was really fun."

"What did you do on that pretend?"

"I was a mime in the park. A hot dog vender had been selling drugs to kids and a mime in the park had found out. The mime ended up in the hospital with severe head trauma and I took it upon myself to enact some revenge on the hot dog vender."

"Always the crusader for the little guy. How'd you get him?"

"The same way he got the mime. A little snip snip," he gestured like scissors cutting, "and something actually fell on him."

"Ooh, what'd you drop? A piano?"

"How would I drop a piano?"

"Never mind, it's just old cartoons. Would you happen to have some pants I could borrow? It's kind of cold in here."

Jarod ruffled through his duffel bag and pulled out a pair of black silk pajama pants. He tossed them over to Parker.

"Mmm, nice. How is it you own pajamas that are nicer than mine?"

"You own nice pajamas."

"How would you know?"

"I've watched you when you were sleeping before."

Ms. Parker stood there, looking stunned, "Wh-when?" It wasn't that she felt her privacy had been invaded, but that she was shocked he would have come that close the Centre just to watch her sleep.

"Whenever I was feeling particularly lonely or I sensed you were in danger."

"How could you tell when I was in danger?"

"It was just a feeling, I would close my eyes, and I would feel that something bad was going to happen to you."

Ms. Parker was silent as she pulled on the pajama pants and walked over to Jarod, "Thank you," she whispered as she picked up his hand and kissed his fingertips.

"Anytime, Parker, anytime." He pulled her to him and kissed her softly on the lips and then on the neck.

"Ah, come one," she pulled away, laughing, "Otherwise, we'll never get out of here."

"Sounds okay to me."

Ms. Parker feigned shock, "You'd stay trapped in a box just to be with me?"

"As long as the box isn't the Centre and I've got you with me, I'm just fine."

They smiled at each other.

Ms. Parker tried to put on a serious face, "Now, what do we know?"

"Well, I was just about to leave the building when an alarm went off. I assumed it was the Centre's doing and decided I'd ask you one more time if you'd leave, before I pulled my final vanishing act."

"Right, and I ran in, with Sydney, Broots, Sam, and two other sweepers in toe. Ah hah," her head snapped up, "Sydney and Broots will be trying to get me out."

As if on signal, the lights in the building turned back on.

Ms. Parker smiled, "You've got to hand it to them, they're devoted."

"Well, can I let them see me here with you?"

A frown came to Ms. Parker's face, "I don't know." She sighed, "That was the problem all along, what kind of repercussions am I facing when I disappear with you?"

Jarod frowned too, "Parker, don't regret making this choice."

"I wouldn't ever," she assured him.

"Good. Now, who do we know that would want to lock you or me into a building?"

"The Centre," they both answered.

"Ah, yes," Jarod continued, "But who at the Centre and why would they do it?"

"Who's behind everything at the Centre?" Ms. Parker asked.

"Raines," they again answered simultaneously.

Author's Note: I'll explain how Jarod ended up in a building owned by the Centre as soon as I decide why that is. I'm still not sure where this is going, but it's easy to pin everything on Raines. Somehow, he always comes out to be the bad guy…which is moderately interesting, considering he sent Ms. Parker and Jarod that picture of their mother's together in "Pretender 2001". But, was that just so that he could get them to find the scrolls, or was it something else? And, why did he say "my children?" The writers were never aiming in the direction of Jarod and Ms. Parker being brother and sister, so what deranged thought does Raines have? Also, in the last episode, "The Inner Sense," how did Ms. Parker get on the train? If Jarod boarded on the last car and walked through every car to get to where Ethan was, wouldn't he have seen her if she were there? Just one more question, when the airplane crashes in Morocco in "IOTH" and Jarod escapes, where did he escape from? Wouldn't he have had to go out through a door on the plane? Ms. Parker was in the passenger area; she would have seen him. Did she let him go? If you have any answers to these questions that I've had burning in my head for the last year, please tell me what they are. Also, Please Review!!! Even if it's just to say that I've confused you with this extremely long Author's Note.

On a special note to Sauron 764, I'm not sure if I'm gonna involve the scrolls in this fic, but my one titled The Truth Is Waiting, also currently in progress, is all about the scrolls. Check it out.


	3. Fate and All That Other Predestination S...

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 3

****

Fate and All Of That Other Predestination Stuff

"I wonder what Dr. Sicko has in his bald, demented head this time," Ms. Parker said spitefully.

"I don't think I ever want to know what goes on in Raines head."

Ms. Parker wrinkled her nose in disgust, "Me either." Then, a thought suddenly came to her, "Jarod, why haven't Sydney or Broots tried to call my cell phone?"

"You can't get service in this building."

"Oh. Jarod, why are you here anyway?"

"Fate?"

Ms. Parker smiled wryly, "Yes. But, that's not what I meant, Wonder Boy. I meant, why are you in this warehouse in Los Angeles?"

"So, you admit that it was fate that brought us together," Jarod smiled back, not acknowledging that she had even asked him a question.

Ms. Parker stepped in closer to Jarod and placed her mouth right next to his ear, "Fate, destiny, and all of that other predestination stuff." She placed a wet, steamy kiss right beneath his ear.

Jarod looped his arms around Ms. Parker's waist, pulling her in close to him, as he bent his lips down next to her ear and repeated what she had said, "Fate, destiny, and all of that other predestination stuff." He kissed her in the same spot that she had kissed him.

"Mmm, I guess investigating why we're trapped in here is going to wait until later," she whispered as Jarod pushed her back toward the bed until she could feel the matress pressed against the back of her legs. 

"Much later," He whispered into her neck as he lowered them down onto the bed.

The Mighty Mouse shirt was thrown aside and landed somewhere near the staircase. The two pairs of pants and boxers followed shortly after.They held each other close as they made love for the second time that day, and what would become one of the many times in the future.

****

One Level Beneath, In the Drippy Corridor

"Syd, don't worry, I'm sure Ms. Parker is fine. You know her, if she feels anywhere near being in danger, her gun is out in a millisecond." Broots assured the older man.

"Yes. I'm sure she's doing okay. Well, Broots, shall we see what else is in this little alcove?" Sydney pushed all of his worried thoughts as far back in his mind as he could so that he could focus on their present situation. He began walking in the opposite direction of where they had just come from.

"Uh, Syd, do we have to? I'd much rather stay here by this wonderful ladder."

"I know that as a symbol of leaving this claustrophobic area, the ladder is a comforting object for you, Broots, but we can't just stay here."

"Why not? Sam knows we're here, I'm sure he'll be here any minute."

"Broots, whoever wanted to keep us from getting out probably tried to stop Sam as well. Now, stop sniveling and come on, there may be another exit." Sydney headed off down the hallway.

Broots mumbled after him, "I sure hope there's nothing large and hairy down there," before following reluctantly. He figured he would have been far worse off staying alone, what if the abominable snowman came to get him? He quickly reminded himself that they were in Los Angeles and not Alaska or the North Pole.

As they traveled farther down the dimly lit passageway, the dampness increased and there were puddles at various spots on the floor. However, the pipes on this end of the hallway didn't seem to be broken or leaky. Broots wondered where the water was coming from, but didn't say anything.

The hallway came to an end and became wider. There were two doors on the right hand side of the wall.

"Wow, this reminds me of those stories where you're faced with two doors and you have to pick which one leads to certain death and which one leads to where you want to go and there's always something that says you can ask one question but it always lies and so you wonder if it's lying about always lying or if it lies when it answers your question and your head feels ready to just..."

Sydney cut Broots rambling off, "Broots, I'm worried about you. How much time do you spend watching late night television?"

"W-well, not much, only when I can't sleep which is really more often than not, but I enjoy the company of Jay and Letterman and Conan and those old reruns of Cheers and…"

Sydney cut Broots off again, "Broots!"

"What?"

"Just pick a door, you're giving me a headache."

"Oh, sorry Syd. You know how my mouth just…" he stopped himself this time, "Sorry. Um, how about this one?" He turned the handle on the righthand door. It opened easily. Sunlight streamed through as he pulled the door open. "Wow, I was right."

Sydney turned the knob of the other door. It also opened easily, allowing more sunlight to poor into the hallway, "Odd," He commented.

"Wow, I wonder how many times both doors led to the destination point?"

Sydney just shook his head at Broots and walked out the door. Broots shrugged and followed.

They were faced with a staircase which went up the two levels that they were beneath ground.

Broots sniffed at the air, "Syd, do you smell that?"

"It's the ocean," Sydney answered back.

Sydney and Broots had come out in the middle of the beach.

"Wow."

****

Inside the Warehouse

Ms. Parker was staring at Jarod's sleeping form, laying next to her. She ran her hand through his hair, before sliding her hand down to his, which was clasped around her arm, and pulling it off, so she could snuggle in closer to him, she slid her fingers through his. It was amazing how sleepy she was becoming, but she couldn't think of a safer place to sleep than in Jarod's arms, which only made her feel more sleepy, as if she were lost in a dreamy fairytale.

Jarod shifted in his sleep a little and ran his free arm up Ms. Parker's spine and stroked her back, "sleep," he mumbled to her, "it's okay."

It was better than okay.

She whispered, "I love you," and slept, lost in the arms of the only person in the world she could always trust and depend on.

She woke many hours later, still in the same position. She looked up at Jarod's face. He was smiling at her. His eyes held her and she stared right back at him.

"Hello," Jarod finally broke the silence.

"Hello," Ms. Parker yawned. She turned, underneath his arm so that the back of her head now rested on his chest, and stared up at the ceiling. She realized for the first time, how big the building really was. "Jarod, how big is this building?"

"It's three levels. Why?"

"I was just wondering again why it was that you were here."

"Well, I needed a place to stay while I was in Los Angeles, and I tend to prefer cold, dark, industrial rooms, I blame it on my childhood surroundings," he chuckled.

Ms. Parker laughed softly. "So, you have this whole big warehouse all to yourself?"

"Yah, it was shut down six months ago because the police found out they were smuggling drugs into the states." (If only Broots could have known he was right!)

"Did you help the cops bust them?"

"Nope, at the time, I believe I was in Wisconsin."

"Wisconsin? What's in Wisconsin?"

"A lead on my mother."

"Oh," Ms. Parker said softly, "I'm sorry about on the Island."

"Parker, that wasn't your fault," he stroked her cheek, "I guess I just wasn't meant to meet her yet."

"I meant what I said, I hope you find her."

"I know you meant it. I know you."

Ms. Parker turned herself back over to face Jarod and smiled, "Yes, you know me, all of me." She turned her face down and breathed out against Jarod's chest. Then she kissed his chest in a path toward his mouth. When she reached it, she stopped, and held him in a long kiss. Then she pulled back, "Wait, you still didn't tell me why you're in Los Angeles."

Jarod's eyes clouded over a little, "Promise you won't get upset."

Ms. Parker worried about what he was going to say now and pulled out of his arms. "It depends what you have to say," she replied stiffly.

"Just over a year ago, I met a woman named Zoe. We dated on and off, when I wasn't busy with a pretend. Lyle kidnapped her and I had to make sure she was going to be okay. She stayed with my father for a while, and we still saw each other. She moved out here to Los Angeles and…"

Ms. Parker cut him off, "You've got a girlfriend!" The anger caused by such a thought coarsed through her. She rolled away from Jarod and leaned over the side of the bed, searching for her clothes on the floor. She couldn't stop the tears from falling and tried to control the sobs that came and shook her body.

"Parker…"

Ms. Parker cut him off, "Don't Jarod! Just don't. You were the only one I ever trusted, Lab Rat, and now you…you have a girlfriend. Where is my shirt?" she bit out at him.

"Parker, stop it, you didn't let me finish," his arm reached out as he leaned over to pull her back to him. He felt as though he was losing her.

"Don't touch me!" She fought against his strong grasp, a useless effort.

"Parker, I broke up with Zoe before any of this happened."

Ms. Parker was still for a moment. Jarod continued now that she wasn't thrashing against him, "After we were on the island, I realized that I could never really love her because I was in love with you. I couldn't come to tell her until now."

"Jarod, it's been a month since we were on the island," Ms. Parker replied softly, "A whole month, and you didn't have time to tell her."

"I needed to come see you again, tell you that I was ending the chase. But, it had to be safe first. I did a few pretends around Blue Cove, then I decided it would be easier to just send you a note because you couldn't shoot me through a note."

Ms. Parker laughed softly, "You'd be surprised."

Jarod smiled a little, he could feel Ms. Parker coming back to him, so he let go of her. "I came out to L.A. a week ago and broke up with Zoe. I couldn't lie to her about how I really felt. I sent you the note and planned to leave as soon as I was sure you'd gotten it…just in case you decided to respond."

Ms. Parker turned toward him, "And I did."

"And you did," Jarod echoed. He waited for what Parker would do next.

She cuddled back up to him, "I'm sorry. I should have known you wouldn't do that to me…after all, it's you."

Jarod let his breathe out. He hadn't even realized that he had been holding it. "I'm sorry too. I should have told you about Zoe before."

"You didn't have a reason too. I didn't allow myself to be an option for you."

Jarod pulled her as close to himself as possible. He was afraid she'd slip away from him.

She could tell that she'd hurt him, and struggled to prove to him that she wasn't going away. She kissed him long and hard to convince him that she was his and his only and she wouldn't let anything come between them. She pulled back, "So, Mighty Mouse, you up for some exploring?"

"You or the building?"

"She lowered her head down next to his ear, "both," then she slid off of him and out of the bed.

She picked up the Mighty Mouse T-shirt and slipped it over her head, then she pulled the pants on and started up the stairs.

"Parker?"

"Catch me if you can," she replied back, continuing up the steps, smiling mischievously.

Jarod got out of the bed, pulled on his boxers and pants and began climbing the stairs. Parker had already vanished. When he reached the top, he looked in both directions, and saw a hand extend from around a corner and signal for him to follow. He continued to where the hand had been and glanced through the doorway. Across the room, the hand slipped out again, and signaled for him to follow again. This continued for a long time, and Jarod felt as though he was beginning to get lost in a maze in which Ms. Parker's hand taunted him because he could never quite reach it before it disappeared. Finally, he came to a room with a closed door. In a pile on the floor, the Mighty Mouse T-shirt was just visible beneath the silk pajama pants. Jarod opened the door slowly. Inside was a bathroom with a shower. The water in the shower was on and Jarod could make out the shape of Ms, Parker's body through the mottled glass. Jarod slid his pants and boxers off and joined Ms. Parker in the shower.

"It took me forever to find what I was looking for," Ms. Parker told him when she heard the shower door click open.

"Me too," he whispered as he came up behind her and wrapped her in his arms, leaning his head over her shoulder and kissing her neck.

"Mmm…I just thought we could use a change of setting."

"Any setting where you are loses all of its beauty and importance the minute I cast my eyes on you."

"That was beautiful," Ms. Parker turned around in his arms to face him.

The water spilled over their bodies, and they moved with it, still forgetting the fact that they were locked in a building, most likely by the Centre. But then, that's what happens when you're in love, everything else loses its beauty and importance as you lose yourself in eachother.

****

Out on the Beach, San Pedro, Los Angeles

"Syd, what's going on?"

"I don't know Broots. I still have no idea what any of this means."

"Well, it's starting to freak me out. One minute I'm standing in a dark hallway worrying that Bigfoot is gonna come around a corner and eat me, and the next I'm out on the beach worrying that I don't have any sunblock on and I'm getting sand in my shoes. What does this mean?"

"You worry too much," Sydney joked with him, trying to lighten the mood because he was just as worried.

"Hah, there's no such thing as too much worry when the Centre is involved."

"True. Very true. Well, lets try to get back to the warehouse."

"But Syd, I don't want to go back in that hallway. It gives me the heebyjeebies."

"Broots, we'd still be locked out of the security office if we went that way. Think clearly. We'll just walk back to the warehouse from here."

"That would make more sense. You know, sometimes my head just comes up with all of these ideas and then I just start saying them like my brain has no control or off-switch or anything or like it's a blender with all of this stuff swirling inside of it and there are only two speeds, extra fast and too slow and if it's too slow, it won't blend ice, but if it's too fast everything goes flying and makes a big mess and you have to clean it up and there you go you wasted a perfectly good smoothie on the wall that really didn't want a smoothie because what would a wall want with a smoothie…you know what I mean, Syd?"

Sydney nodded. He hadn't been paying any attention to the other man's rambling, he was too busy enjoying the beautiful sunset of a warm California beach.

Broots continued babbling incoherently all the way back to the warehouse, and Syd continued nodding without paying any attention. That's what happened when you knew Broots for a long time, you learned to tune him out.

It was dark when they got back, but the power was still on, so, they made their way back to the security office. Sam and the two other sweepers were nowhere to be found. Neither Broots nor Sydney commented on the fact, they just gave each other grave looks and continued to the security office.

Once they got there, Broots sat down at a computer on the back wall, near the map, and typed away furiously, trying to find what damaging secret the Centre was hiding this time.

"Woah, Syd, look at this."

Sydney leaned over the other man's shoulder and read the memo that was on the screen.

"Who is CJP?"

Author's Note: Okay, thanks to Phenyx for the suggestion of Angelo as the culprit of this little fiasco. I'm considering it, notice how I've left it open, CJ can stand for Cracker Jack, Angelo's nickname, but it may be someone else…it depends on what devilish plot my brain comes up with. By the way, Jarod did break out of the cockpit in IOTH, but that only answers one question. I've got new ones now that I've replayed the scene for the millionth time. Like, how did Raines and Lyle get to the cockpit before Ms. P if she was in the passenger area and they were in the Cargo area? Who put Jarod's backpack on the plane? You can just barely make it out in the background on top of some suitcases. And, by the by, whose suitcases are they? I didn't get a chance to rewatch the train scene yet, so I hold by my previous thoughts. I hope that Broots rambling wasn't too confusing, much like Broots, I sometimes just go off on crazy tangents. Also, I know that Parker and Jarod are doing practically nothing, but give them a break, they're drydocked after all of this time. I hope their scenes aren't to awfully smarmy…I personally think they're sweet, but I'm a complete and total romantic. Hey can someone explain to me what a shipper's heart is? I keep reading reviews where people say they've got shipper hearts and I am completely lost. Thanks for reading and reviewing!!! Luv Ya All!!!


	4. Allies of the Same War

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. Broots refers to the WB's Birds of Prey indirectly, it should be noted that I've only seen one episode of this show and know pretty much nothing about it and of course, I don't own it.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: In case you were wondering, in the last chapter, how there's a shower in the middle of a warehouse, it's because the manager, who I may or may not name at some later date, depending on whether or not I decide he had any relevence to this story, had a personal bathroom and rest quarters. Remember, it's a very very large warehouse.

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 4

****

Allies of the Same War

"Who's CJP?"

"I don't know, Syd, but this order came from the Tower."

"But, why would the Tower want to isolate Ms. Parker?"

"I don't know, it's the Tower, they've done some crazy things before, like the T-board or the time they…"

"Broots, do you think Jarod is in there with her?" Sydney suddenly asked, cutting Broots off, as he finally remembered why they were at the building in the first place.

"I don't know."

"But, did the Centre know?"

"You mean, you think they set this up to get Jarod and Ms. Parker trapped in there together?"

"It's a possibility."

"But why? She hates him, she'd kill him, he may already be dead in fact, and they wanted him back alive. It's seems like a gamble to me to send someone you don't want hurt, in to the clutches of their arch nemesis." Thoughts of Batman and Catwoman came to mind…then he remembered that there was some rumor about Batman and Catwoman having an illegitimate child... was that like Jarod and Ms. Parker? He really needed to cut back on his TV watching.  
"Broots, there's a lot more to Jarod and Ms. Parker than we know about, I don't think arch nemesis is an appropriate term for either of them."

"Are you sure? I swear, every time I'm around her she's angry with him and swearing vengeance and talking about 'serving up his genius brain on a platter, with an apple.' "

"Broots, Ms. Parker's said a lot of things, but you and I both know that when it comes down to it, she's all threat and no action. The information that Jarod has provided her in the past is far too valuable to her for her to actually want him back in the Centre when he could be out finding more about the truth. In the end, they're very much allies on the same side of a war."

"Whatever you say, Syd, but I'd still bet money on Jarod's head coming out in a box,"

Broots joked. He was met by a grim look on Sydney's face and decided, now was not the time to try and lighten the mood. 

"Broots, keep looking, we have to find out what's going on, Ms. Parker's life may depend on it." Sydney's fatherly concern was apparent in the deep frown lines, which shadowed his face. "…and Jarod's too."

****

Inside of the Warehouse

After their shower, Ms. Parker and Jarod were feeling rejuvenated, and hungry. Jarod led the way to the refrigerator after they had dried off…without towels, and redressed. He held Ms. Parker's hand in his as they found their way through the labyrinth of the building and down to the kitchen.

"Jarod, what exactly did they ship out of here?"

"Lots of things. But I think that mainly they shipped clothing."

"Was it nice clothing?"

"How should I know?" Jarod laughed.

"Well, you are a genius."

"That doesn't mean that I'm clairvoyant or can talk to the past or anything. You're the one with the Inner Sense, do you know if it was nice clothing?" Jarod grinned at her.

"Yes." Ms. Parker replied calmly.

"How?" Jarod said incredulously

Ms. Parker laughed at the look on his face, "Actually, Wonder Boy, I have no idea. I just wanted to see what you'd do when I said that I did."

Jarod leaned over and kissed the tip of her nose, "That's what I'd do."

She playfully hissed like a cat and swatted at him. He playfully swatted back as they finally made it back down the stairs and to a small room where you could here the faint buzz of a refrigerator.

"So, Parker, what would you like to eat?"

"What have you got?"

"Hmm. I don't know, everything I've got may not have any 'nutritional value.' " He joked about her earlier comment.

"Ugh. Fine, I don't care, I'm so hungry I could eat a cow."

"Oh, sorry, Parker, I don't have any steak." Jarod said seriously.

Ms. Parker laughed, "It's an expression, Jarod, it means I'm really hungry."

"Oh, well then, I'm hungry enough to eat a cow too."

Ms. Parker shook her head slightly as she grinned at Jarod and his amused face at the new lingo he'd just learned. "Well, hurry up, I might have to eat you soon."

"I don't have any problems with that," Jarod lifted his eyebrows suggestively.

"Later, Pez Head, feed me now!" Ms. Parker said sternly, but full of laughter. "I'm not happy when my stomach is growling."

The refrigerator was empty except for some small cups of chocolate pudding, a can of spray cheese, and a carton of milk.

"Hmm," Jarod said as he peered into the fridge, "I don't think you're going to want any of this."

"What is it?"

"Chocolate pudding, spray cheese, and milk."

"Jarod, how do you live?"

"What do you mean?"

"How do you live off of this junk food?"

"Happily."

Ms. Parker laughed and shook her head at him, "Happy. There's an emotion I'd forgotten."

"Not forgotten, just lost for a long time," Jarod answered knowingly.

Ms. Parker stared at him. Then, she slammed the door of the refrigerator shut and pressed Jarod's back up against it. She wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled her head into his chest, "I'm glad I found you."

"You never lost me," Jarod replied, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer.

"Mmm," she sighed. "Jarod, I really am hungry."

Jarod laughed and unwrapped her arms from around his neck, "Hold on, I think there's some stuff in the cupboard over here." He walked over to it, pulling Ms. Parker with him because he wouldn't let go of her hand. "Ah hah," he said opening the cupboard. "How does alphabet soup sound?"

"Great."

Five minutes later, the soup was ready, thanks to a small pot that Jarod had found in the cupboard. As well as, some bowls and spoons, a can opener, and an electric stove. All were courtesy of the staff kitchen from the factory.

Jarod and Ms. Parker sat at a small table in the corner of the kitchen.

"Mmm, I haven't had alphabet soup in a long time," Ms. Parker said softly.

"I don't understand why you would want to miss out on eating all of this great food."

Ms. Parker just smiled.

They finished the soup and Jarod pushed his bowl over towards Ms. Parker.

"Hey, you can clean your own dirty dish."

"Look down." 

In the bottom of Jarod's bowl were the letters I-L-U-V-U.

Ms. Parker looked up and met his boyish grin, her eyes sparkled, "I think that is simultaneously the sweetest, and the weirdest thing I've ever seen. How did you save those letters?"

"Fate."

As they washed the dishes, Jarod and Ms. Parker couldn't help throwing suds at each other. When they had cleaned up the mess, they realized it must be really late. Jarod looked around for his watch, which had been buried earlier underneath his shirt. Once he found it, it informed them that it was now 12:30 am.

"Sleep time," he told Ms. Parker.

"Aw, you're not wimping out on me are you Wonder Boy?"

"No, but I need some sleep and so do you, come on."

He climbed into the bed and pulled her with him. They fell asleep with their bodies pressed close together. Somehow, they didn't worry at all about why they were locked in a building or who had done it. It's odd the way the mind works like that sometimes. But, hell, it was the first time they were both happy in what felt like an eternity. Sometimes, bliss is blinding.

****

The Security Office

"Syd, I'm starting to see dancing spots. Is the screen doing the polka?"

Broots had been typing away trying to find out anything he could on Chief Shipping, the name CJP, or any orders pertaining to Ms. Parker. The search hadn't revealed anything. And, despite several attempts, Broots couldn't get the security system back online, so they had no way of telling where Ms. Parker was or if she was okay.

"It's, okay, Broots. If there was something to find, I'm sure you would have found it by now, turn the computer off."

"But, Syd, what are we going to do? We still have no idea what's going on, no idea of how Ms. Parker is, this is bad, really really bad."

"Whoever is orchestrating this whole ordeal will allow us to find out about it when the time is right."

"But, we can't just wait around. What if Ms. Parker is hurt?" Broots lowered his voice, "What if…what if there's a murderer locked in there with her?"

"Broots, really, try to read a book once in a while instead of turning on one of those late night horror movies." Sydney tried not to let the other man's words affect him, but he couldn't stop the horrible ideas from running through his head.

"Syd, I hate to admit it, but I'm really scared."

"It's okay, Broots, it's okay," Sydney tried to reassure Broots and himself at the same time.

All of a sudden, an e-mail popped up on the screen.

The two men leaned in close to see what it was.

The message said:

Keep digging, some mazes aren't mazes, some doors aren't doors. The answers are all there if only you can sea them.

Broots couldn't trace the origin of the message though he had a distinct feeling it was from the Centre and was meant to make them pawns in this newest game of "you run, I chase."

"Broots, look."

"Syd, I am looking. My eyes are ready to cross, or fall out of my head, or do something that eyes are not meant to do, from staring at this computer screen for so long."

"No, Broots, look at how they spelt the word 'sea'."

"Like king of the sea."

"Yes. Sea, as in ocean. Broots, we're right by the ocean."

"Okay, but what does it mean, 'some mazes aren't mazes, some doors aren't doors?' "

"You don't suppose…?" 

"What? What don't I suppose?"

"Digging would imply underground. What's underground, Broots?"

"Volcanic rock?"

"No, Broots, what's underground at this building?"

"That dark drippy hallway which I'm sure is housing some large furry woodland beast, or Frankenstein, or maybe at least, very large mutated rats."

"Yes, the hallway, a maze. Broots, it's telling us that though the hallway seems to go in only two directions, it's a maze with hidden doors."

"Wait, so there's an entire labyrinth hidden underneath this building?"

"Yes."

"Oh boy. I know what this means, back down the rabbit hole."

"Yes."

Broots sighed, "Can we at least try to find a bigger flashlight this time?"

It didn't take long to find a very large flashlight in a shelf on the left-hand wall of the security office. Broots silently reprimanded himself for not thinking to check there before they had gone down into the tunnel the first time.

Broots and Sydney descended into the abyss, and Broots, never a religious man, prayed that they wouldn't find anything large and hairy…with fangs, he added as an afterthought.

Author's Note: Okay, right now you're thinking that J and Ms. P are completely oblivious to everything...which is true, but that's just how I'm writing it. I know the vegetable soup think is really dorky, but come on, it's Jarod, it's what he does, really sweet dorky things. I'm still not sure of the overall direction of this story. Any ideas on what's hidden in this labyrinth? Anymore ideas on who's behind all of this? I'm completely open to all suggestions, anything at all, just tell me. You need to help me pick up the story because it's really going nowhere fast, help me switch gears here. I think I'm just too lost in this fantasy world of Jarod and Ms. Parker to write any action in…hey, maybe Broots and Sydney will find a hidden passageway into the warehouse and then they'll all get out but the Centre will come and…someone help me!!! Ack!!! Thanks for all of the reviews!!! Here's to hoping that you're not as crazy and obsessive as me and that if you are, you're darn happy being that way! Please review!!! Love Ya All!!!

`~` = me fretting, see the wiggly mouth?


	5. Colonel Mustard in the Library With A Wr...

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. I don't own Chutes and Ladders, Hi Ho Cherrio, or Clue either. I'm not so interseted in buying them either…sorry.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 5

****

Colonel Mustard in the Library with A Wrench

"Syd, did you hear that?" Broots sounded panicky.

"What, now, Broots?" Sydney sounded frustrated. Broots had been jumpy for the last five minutes, as they searched the walls of the hallway.

"It was a whirring noise, sort of like something flew past, but not something big, something small like a butterfly, only it would have to be scarier than a butterfly, like a-a killer bee or something."

"Broots, bees buzz. Now, did you see something fly by you?"

"No."

"Then there was nothing there."

"But…"

Sydney cut Broots off, "Broots, it's just your fear of enclosed places, combined with worry about Ms. Parker and too many late night movies, that's creating this delusion in you. There's nothing here-" Suddenly, a section of the wall that Sydney was searching pushed back and he stumbled forward slightly.

"Nothing but hidden doors, crazy mazes, and God knows what else," Broots ended Syd's sentence.

The flashlights revealed another corridor with a sharp turn about 50 feet down in the right direction. The left side was a dead end.

"Syd, this just got even creepier," Broots answered as the lights in the hallway they were in turned off and lights in the new corridor flashed on.

"Someone's playing a game with us, Broots," Sydney said, "Sending us around in a maze, it sounds an awful lot like something Jarod would cook up."

"Couldn't he have just asked to play Chutes and Ladders?" Broots said fretfully, "I wouldn't have turned him down. Maybe even Hi Ho Cherrio, but this is more like Clue, and I don't want to find out that someone's been murdered…especially if it was by Raines, masquerading as Colonel Mustard in the Library with a wrench."

"Broots, you know as well as I that Jarod never concocts these plots without having very good reasons. We'll just have to play along for now," Sydney walked down the hallway and around the corner, with Broots following closely.

"Syd, don't you think we should leave a trail of bread crumbs or something?"

"Good, idea Broots, we'll mark it with a pen though." Sydney walked back to the newly opened door and kneeled down to draw an arrow on the ground. His pen wouldn't work on the cold concrete. "Broots, do you have a marker or something?"

"Here," Broots handed him a pink highlighter that he carried around because he often needed to highlight words in files that he was working on for Ms. Parker.

Sydney drew a large arrow and Broots grimaced as the concrete tore at the soft felt tip of the highlighter. Now, he'd have to buy a new one. 

Sydney stood back up, handed Broots his highlighter, and went back around the corner.

Broots shook his head at the sight of the mangled tip on his highlighter, recapped it, and followed after Sydney. Sydney seemed a bit too eager to go on Jarod's latest expedition. Though, Broots had to admit that he was far less frightened knowing that Jarod was the likely culprit of their captivity. Jarod would never hurt them…right? But, what had happened to Sam?

****

Earlier, at the Centre

Lyle stared at the report on his desk. Apparently, his sister had gone gallivanting off with her team of misfit sidekicks on another one of Jarod's insane clues. He honestly didn't know why anybody at the Centre put up with Jarod's game of setting out bait for them. If he were in charge, he wouldn't go about the chase the same way at all. But then, he was sure Parker's emotional side was getting in the way of her judgement. 

He could tell there was more to her pursuit of Jarod than she was telling, that something personal drove her to seek him out. Jarod had some sort of power over her, perhaps it was because of her mother's death or just because she felt he was really the only family she had. 

Honestly, he didn't really care why she chased after the pretender, so long as she failed to bring him back. Then, he would have more power at the Centre, because he would bring Jarod back himself. That was the whole plan: for him to win this little game, become Raines main confidante, gain power, and eventually over take the old wheeze bag to run the Centre himself. 

There was, every now and then, the faintest whisper of a voice in the back of his head which told him that power and greed would lead to his demise, but he never paid any attention to it. Who wanted to be good and noble when being wicked and power driven was so much more fun?

He closed the file and left his office to go home where he had a lovely young woman named Kuan Yin waiting for him. They had been dating for two weeks now. Normally, by this time, he would have had her locked in the closet and starving. However, he felt a special attachment to her, unlike the Asian women he usually seduced and then tortured. He wasn't sure what it was, but something about her drew him in and he found he actually liked her…I wouldn't go as far as to say he loved her because, he didn't really know what love was. But, perhaps, this was the beginning of his turning point. Perhaps there was still hope for him. Perhaps…

As Lyle entered the lobby, a rather large sweeper came running up to him.

"Mr. Lyle, sir, we've just received a call from Sam."

"Who's Sam?" Lyle asked blandly, annoyed that he was being kept from going home.

"Ms. Parker's head sweeper."

Lyle vaguely remembered the man, "Yes, and what did Sam say?" Lyle stated impatiently.

"He's in Wyoming and he has no idea how he got there."

"How could he not know how he got there?" Lyle was becoming more infuriated with this man who was stalling him from going home and spoke with a violent undertone.

"He said he woke up at the airport and he's being held in security."

Lyle stalked toward the door yelling back to the sweeper, "Have someone pick him up, I'll speak with him in the morning."

He wasn't about to let some ignorant sweeper who was probably drunk or high or both keep him from breaking his date with Kuan Yin. He'd deal with whatever was going on in the morning.

Little did he know that Sam's sudden reappearance in Wyoming was all part of a huge plan, taking place right underneath his nose. A huge plan which would change the lives of everyone who worked for the Centre.

****

Back in Los Angeles, Inside of the Warehouse

Ms. Parker woke up around five in the morning and accidentally woke Jarod up as she attempted to lean over him and the side of the bed to read the time off of his watch on the floor. 

It was interesting, but they were aware of the slightest movement of each other. It was almost like they were so in tune with each other that one knew exactly where the other was without even thinking about it. 

Ms. Parker didn't notice she had woken Jarod until she leaned back into the bed and saw his eyes staring at her through the darkness.

A skylight above the stairwell was allowing moonlight to filter into the room and now that dawn was beginning to break, the room was faintly brighter.

Neither spoke. A huge grin began to grow across Jarod's face and Ms. Parker couldn't help but smile back.

"You're beautiful in the early morning," Jarod said softly.

"Oh, as opposed to every other part of the day?" Ms. Parker answered softly.

"No. You're beautiful for the whole day. It's just more wonderful in the morning when I wake up and find out that I haven't only dreamed you up. When I can see that you aren't an illusion but that you're really here."

Ms. Parker crawled up toward him so she stared right down into his eyes, "I'm right here." She lowered her mouth to his and kissed him gently. Her lips felt faintly swollen from all of the kissing they had done in the last 24 hours, but it was a nice feeling to her.

Jarod suddenly spun her around so that she was pinned beneath him. His hands were grasped around her hips but they slowly slid up, pulling the Mighty Mouse T-shirt up with them. 

Ms. Parker raised her arms up so he could slide the shirt all of the way off. The shirt flew effortlessly through the air, re-covering the watch on the floor. 

Ms. Parker moaned a little when Jarod slank back and kissed in a little circle around her bellybutton.

The next things to go were the pajama pants and Jarod's boxers. They, however, landed farther away, dropping onto Jarod's duffel bag and DSA case. We'll just say it was because of renewed strength in the morning, despite only 4 ½ hours of sleep.

A little while later, as the sun began to stream into the room more, small crescent marks were visible on Jarod's back and several small red spots were forming along Ms. Parker's neck and collarbone. Small tokens of affection from their early morning activities.

"Mmm, can we wake up this way every morning?" Ms. Parker breathed out slowly.

"I should certainly hope so." Jarod answered as he traced over all of Ms. Parker's face with his forefinger, memorizing every feature of it and locking it away with his fondest memories, of which there were few. When he reached her lips, she kissed the finger as it slid over her skin. The finger slid down her chin and neck and then circled around the red spots. "Sorry about those."

"Don't be, because then I'll have to be sorry about these," she fingered the little marks on his back that her finger nails had left, "And I'm not really sorry." 

Her fingers moved up his back and around his neck until she held his chin in both of her hands. Her thumb traced over his lips. He kissed it and then raised his own hand to pull all of the fingertips of her hand to his lips. He kissed them tenderly and was about to drop her hand from his when he noticed the little pink scratches on them.

"Parker, what are these scratches from?"

"Oh, it was stupid really," Parker avoided answering.

"Well, it looks pretty painful. What happened?" His eyes filled with concern.

"I was sort of upset when I read your note and I broke a glass. I swept it up with my hands."

"Why?"

Ms. Parker turned her head to the side a little and focused on the small spot of light the skylight was making on the floor, "It seems a lifetime ago, Jarod, when I was so angry. So full of hatred…and then there was your note. Everything came pouring out all at once. I was numb in the morning. I wasn't thinking. I didn't know what I was going to do except that I had to stop lying to you and myself…I had to admit that if you ended the chase, I'd never see you again…that it meant goodbye. You know I hate goodbyes."

Jarod could see all of the ghosts from the past lingering in the back of her mind, almost haunting him in the beauty of her eyes. He turned her face back towards his and held his hand out to her, "Hello."

Ms. Parker smiled at how easily he could make her feel better with the simple kindness of his soul, she shook his hand, "Hello."

Jarod got up from the bed and walked over to his duffel bag, pulling out some new clothes. He put on a pair of black boxers and walked back to the bed, handing some clothes to Ms. Parker.

This shirt was blue and had PEZ spelt out across it in little candy shaped splotches of paint. "Pez Head," Ms. Parker mocked him lightly.

Jarod just smiled, "I thought you'd like that."

She pulled it on, followed by a pair of red satin boxers. "Only because you're my Pez Head. Personally, I hate those little candies."

Jarod's face was full of surprise, "Ms. Parker, you hate Pez?"

"Yes."

"How's that possible?"

"I just don't like them, sorry."

Jarod just sighed and shook his head, "It's your loss." Then, he perked back up, "Okay, Pez Head, what do you want for breakfast?"

"Jarod, you can't call me Pez Head, that's your name."

"But, I don't have any nickname for you."

"Yes you do, you've got Parker."

"That doesn't count."

"Fine. Call me… Jarod, just call me Parker, please. I'll make sure no one else drops the Ms. and then it's just your name for me."

Jarod twisted his mouth, considering it, "Okay, but you have to promise, because you're the only one who calls me Pez Head."

"I promise." She walked over to him as she spoke.

"Good." He pulled her to him and hugged her close. Pulling back, he spoke again, "Hey, Parker, we're still locked in this building with no idea why."

Ms. Parker frowned a little, "You're right. I guess we should actually try to find out why this time. We'll just have to keep some distance between us to avoid any… temptations."

"Right." Jarod let go of her and backed away to set up his laptop, plugging it into the phone line.

"Okay, I'll sit over here on the bed, and you sit there at that desk with your laptop."

As the laptop booted up, Jarod cast a glance at Parker. She had been watching him and turned her eyes away when she saw him watching her. He brought his eyes back to the computer, and she turned her eyes back on him. They kept avoiding looking in each other's eyes until Jarod couldn't pay attention to the computer any more and caught Ms. Parker's eyes coming back to him to see if he was watching her.

"Parker, this is ridiculous. I'm sure that we can at least sit next to each other."

"Oh, okay." She walked over and pulled up a chair next to him.

Jarod turned his attention back to the computer and began hacking into the Centre's files.

Ms. Parker was staring hard at his profile and Jarod glimpsed her through the corner of his eye. She turned her gaze to the computer, then, back to Jarod, who was now staring at her face forward.

"Maybe we could share a chair?" Ms. Parker suggested.

"Sure," Jarod pulled his chair back from the desk and Ms. Parker sat in his lap, facing the screen. His arms slid around her to the keyboard as he rested his chin on her shoulder to look at the screen.  
He pulled up all of the recent orders and memos that the Centre had released, and began to read over them.

Ms. Parker turned a little in his lap so that she could see more of him and less of the screen. His lips brushed her cheek as she turned. They stared at each other. It was impossible to tell who initiated the kiss first because they both leaned in. They enjoyed the lip lock for two solid minutes before Jarod pulled back.

"Okay, this isn't working."

"Yes, but…" Ms. Parker replied.

"But…" Jarod echoed. He picked her up in his arms and carried her towards the bed. He dropped her gently on the bed and was just leaning over when the computer gave out a little bing bong noise.

"E-mail," they said at the same time.

Author's Note: Okay, am I slipping into R-rated territory? Warn me if I need to up the rating on this fic. By the way, CJP matching up with Catherine Jameson Parker is just a coincidence…I think…oh the possibilities. Kuan Yin is a bit of foreshadowing. I don't know if it's true, but in the movie Yours Mine and Ours they say that Kuan Yin is a goddess who is the symbol of fertility and she casts her powers on all who gaze upon her. Do you see where I'm going with this?(No, not a J and Ms. P baby, too many fics deal with that, think Lyle…) I'm not sure how it's going to work into the story, but I hate having so many people play ultimate evil, and there's still a chance for Lyle, right? It's just a thought, but mostly, I wanna know what you think! I love reviews you guys so keep sending them and thanks to everyone who already sent one. Help me figure out what the latest big evil plan is and how it's gonna affect everyone…plus any additional comments. Don't be afraid to tell me if my writing is lacking in a certain area or if the story's not going in a direction that you like. Luv Ya All!!! Buh Bye!


	6. Someday

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. I don't own the Munsters (Herman Munster) or the Brady Bunch and it's characters/sets. I'm not excessively fond of the show either, but hey, Broots is my TV guy so whatever. I also don't own Dracula. Hey, you know what I think of when I think of Sasquatch? The abominable from those cheesy old Christmas movies that I love…it will make you crack up when you read it picturing him trying to eat Broots. Hah hah, so funny. By the way, I don't own him either…sigh. I think I'd sic him on NBC if I did. "Take off the Pretender?! I'll incur the wrath of the Abominable on you!" Honestly, no hard feelings to NBC, it was just a bad choice on their part…sigh…nevermore.

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: Hey, thanks for all the great ideas! I'm definitely gonna use some of them. Watch closely to see if yours comes up… in other words, the identity of CJP…soon…

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 6

****

Someday…

Jarod stared longingly at Ms. Parker before retreating to his laptop. She remained on the bed waiting for his return.

Jarod opened the e-mail and glanced at it with a puzzled expression.

Ms. Parker saw the look on Jarod's face and propped herself up on her elbows, "What is it?"

"It's encrypted."

"Oh. Will it take long to decrypt it?

"Yes."

"Do you have to stay at the computer while it does?" Ms. Parker asked, hoping that he didn't. There were many far more productive ways she could think of for him to spend his time.

"No."

"Well then…" Ms. Parker raised one arm from the bed and gestured for him to come over.

Jarod quickly set up the decryption software and walked back over to the bed. He pulled Ms. Parker's arms out from underneath her so that her back hit the mattress and lowered himself to her. He kissed down along her arm and up to her shoulder and was about to repeat the process on her other arm when she took action first, pulling his mouth to hers.

She parted his lips with her tongue and he complied with his own. Pulling back, she took his head and moved it down to her neck.

He ran his tongue over one of the previous bite marks, causing a shiver to run through Ms. Parker's body.

A few minutes later, the new clothes were discarded, but they only made it as far as the end of the bed this time. This encounter was much gentler than the previous one that morning. Though, Jarod did end up with his own little bite mark.

When they were redressed, Ms. Parker sat with Jarod's head resting in her lap, as she stroked his cheek. He was lazily playing with her other hand…the left one.

"Parker?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm really glad you chose me over the Centre."

"Me too, Jarod, me too."

"Parker?"

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Parker?"

"Yes, Jarod." She laughed at his repetition.

"I'm really hungry now, no more skipping meals."

"Well, that's kind of hard when there's nothing here to eat."

"Parker?"

"Yes?"

"Someday, when I ask you, would you marry me?"

Ms. Parker didn't answer, but continued to stroke his cheek. 

She'd never felt that she was the marrying type. But then, this was Jarod…how could she refuse him anything? What did she run the risk of losing now? Nothing. Jarod wasn't going anywhere. He'd never leave before, where would he get the inclination now? So, what difference did it make if she was his by law or not? Either way, she was his.

Jarod was pained by her lack of response and dropped her hand. He hadn't really expected an answer. He wasn't even sure why he asked. He was just so afraid that he would lose her. "It's okay. You don't have to answer, I'll take you anyway you let me have you."

A tear made it's way down Ms. Parker's cheek and spilled onto Jarod's cheek. Slowly, she leaned down and kissed it away. Then, she brushed her lips against his ear.

"Someday, Jarod, when you ask me, I'll say yes."

Jarod simply smiled and recaptured her hand, looping his thumb and forefinger around her ring finger.

They sat in the silence, content with what their future would hold. Jarod, holding the hand of his Parker, curled up in her lap; Parker stroking the cheek of her Jarod, holding him close to her heart.

****

Down in the Labyrinth

Sydney and Broots had now entered a third hallway of the maze. Just like before, the lights in the previous hallway flickered off and the lights in the new hallway turned on. This passage was short, with one door on both ends. Sydney reacquired the marker from Broots and drew another arrow on the ground.

"Syd, do you have to press so hard?"

"What?" Sydney had no idea what Broots was talking about.

"The highlighter. Do you have to press so hard on it?"

"Broots, I promise, I'll buy you another one. I have no idea why you're so attached to a highlighter. What sort of significance could it possibly have for you?"

Broots shrugged, "I just don't like seeing it get mangled…Why?" he questioned, "You know, sometimes I worry that I'm going insane, is that what this is? Worrying about whether or not inanimate objects are shredded or not? Or is it just me being me? Or am I someone else? Would I ever know if I had a split personality? I mean, how could anyone with a split personality know that they had a split personality? They're crazy, right? You wouldn't know that you were crazy. Or is it like psychopaths and sociopaths, where a psychopath doesn't know right from wrong, but a sociopath does and does the wrong thing anyway?" Broots finally stopped for air.

Sydney took the chance to speak to him, "Broots, I really am worried now. What's wrong with you?"

Broots finally snapped and started shouting angrily, " What's wrong?! What's wrong?! We are down in a psycho funhouse, in a building owned by the Centre that we've never heard of, searching for something…we don't even know what we're looking for…We have no idea who planned this or why we're here. Ms. Parker may be dead and Sam too. My highlighter is ruined and Sasquatch, Dracula, or Herman Munster may be coming to eat me! I'm scared out of my mind and you wanna know what's wrong." Broots' tirade finally ended. Sydney just stared at him. "Sorry, Syd," Broots gave an exasperated sigh, "…I'm just tired."

"It's understandable Broots, we haven't slept in over 24 hours."

"Yah, I know… Herman Munster would never have tried to eat anyone…he was too goofy and lighthearted…Do you think he was a cat person or a dog person?"

"I wouldn't know, Broots…And, don't worry, I really will buy you a new highlighter."

"Thanks, Syd."

"Now, lets choose which door comes next in- what did you call it?"

"A psycho funhouse."

Sydney half smiled, "You'll have to tell that one to Ms. Parker, it sounds like something she'd say."

Broots nodded and went to the door on the left. Sydney walked to the one on the right.

"On the count of three?" Broots said to Sydney.

"Yes."

Together they counted, "one, two, three."

Broots' door revealed a broom closet. He reached in and pulled something out, "Mop?" he asked Sydney. 

Sydney chuckled slightly, "No thank you Broots. Come here, there's a long hallway with about eight doors."

"What do you want to bet that each one I open is a broom closet?" Broots joked halfheartedly as he walked over to where Sydney was holding the door open.

"Don't worry so much, Broots."

"I wish I didn't have to, but with the Centre, all I can do is worry."

"Hmm…if it is the Centre. It still makes me think of Jarod."

"Syd, for our sake, I really hope it is Jarod."

Broots stopped in front of the first door on the left and opened it. It revealed a sink in a small cubicle. "A sink, what do you know, just what I always wanted." 

Sydney opened the corresponding door on the other side of the hallway. It revealed what appeared to be an extremely large walk in closet. The walls were covered in everything from men's slacks and woman's capris to tuxedos and brightly coloured gowns. 

Broots walked over, "Wow, what's all of this for?"

"I don't know, I think we'll have to keep going to find out what it all means."

The next two doors concealed an operating room and a room set up to resemble a living room, something like the Brady Bunch living room.

"Wow, I feel like I just stepped into Mike and Carol Brady's house."

"Who?"

"The Brady Bunch. It was a show in the early 70s about this woman with three daughters who met a man with three sons and they got married and they had a maid named Alice, it was a 'group that somehow formed a family.'"

"Yes, that's all very charming, Broots, but what does it have to do with an operating room, a sink, and a closet full of clothing?"

"I don't know."

They opened the next set of doors. These two doors led into a kitchen and a room which was filled with tall artificial trees so that it resembled a forest, it was incredibly large, by the looks of it.

"Wow, this just keeps getting weirder. Why would you set up a forest in the basement of a warehouse in the middle of Los Angeles?"

"I don't know Broots, but it's starting to resemble sets created to run SIMs."

"Wow, do you think the Centre ran SIMs in this building?"

"Anything's a possibility."

They came to the last set of doors. The right hand door opened on a very cluttered office. The left-hand door was locked.

"Syd, this door is locked."

"Well, experience with the Centre tells me that whatever's behind the locked door is the truth you've been searching for. Let's try to open it."

Broots shook his head sadly, "Sydney, seeing as we're not currently at the Centre, I feel free to tell you that I hate working there, that said, I'm going to need your pen."

"My pen?"

"So I can use the metal parts to pick the lock."

"Oh."

"Don't worry, Syd, I'll buy you another one."

Sydney smiled softly at the way Broots tried to lighten the mood.

After dismantling the pen, Broots went to work on the lock.

It clicked open in a matter of seconds. They walked through the door, which sprung shut and locked again right behind them. However, there was no keyhole or latch on this side to let them back out.

"Spring loaded hinges and a handle which only locks and unlocks one way. We better hope that we're locked in someplace we can get out of elsewhere." Broots commented.

They were now faced with a staircase. It only went up one level.

Mounting the steps, they walked up to the top. There was another door, also locked.

Broots picked it open as well. Again, as they walked through, the door sprung shut and locked behind them.

They had come up inside of a small room. Broots walked over to the wall and flicked on the light switch. It was some sort of office.

"Broots, does anything about this office seem odd to you?"

"There's no computer."

"Other than that, Broots. Look, there are no papers, no pens or books, there's nothing but a desk and a chair and some empty book cases."

"Oh, you're right. That's odd. Who has an office without any papers?"

"Someone who doesn't really use their office."

"Hey, Syd, where do you think this door goes?" He walked over to a door on the opposite wall leaned against it and stumbled through as it opened.

The door led right into the first sub-level of the warehouse, and there, sitting on a bed, were Ms. Parker and Jarod.

"Ms. Parker?" Broots said, full of surprise.

Hearing Ms. Parker's name, Sydney walked up right behind Broots.

Ms. Parker pulled her head up at the sound of her name, and Jarod turned his eyes in Broots direction.

Jarod lifted his head out of Ms. Parker's lap and started to pull himself up, about to let go of Ms. Parker's hand, but she pulled him back to her. He turned his eyes up to her questioningly.

"It's okay," she whispered to him. He settled back in and they both turned to look at Broots and Sydney.

Broots was stuck to the spot he was standing in and he was sure his jaw had hit the floor at the sight before him. Sydney looked a bit less shocked, but, never the less, they were both silent.

"What's the matter Dr. Freud? Never seen a woman and a man sitting on a bed before?" Her voice was slightly filled with her Centre harshness, but was much less hard around the edges than usual. She turned her attention toward Broots, "What about you Broots? I'm sure you've seen this a million times on all of that late night television you watch."

Broots stuttered, "Y-yes. B-but…this is y-you…and J-Jarod…"

"And that surprises you?" she almost laughed but managed to maintain her composure, all the while, continuing to stroke Jarod's cheek. Jarod kept his face expressionless, waiting to see how everything would unfold.

Sydney finally spoke, "Only mildly. With your history, I expected as much." He became quite amused at the scene of his surrogate son and surrogate daughter so completely at ease in each other's grasp. The two people he cared most about, not as edgy or angry around each other any longer. For a moment, he wondered what had happened, but even he wasn't naïve enough to believe they had been locked up in a building together for almost a day and a half without doing anything. After all, these were two people whom only just realized how much they really meant to each other…and Parker was in Jarod's Pez shirt.

"What's so funny, Syd?" Ms. Parker slightly smiled, knowing exactly what he was amused at.

"The sight of you, not in a suit with high heels barking out orders, but in a shirt which has Pez written across it, red boxers, and with Jarod curled up in your lap and..." he trailed off.

"Happy," she finished for him.

"Yes, happy."

Jarod just lay there silently, observing how Parker now spoke to his mentor.

"I suppose I don't need to ask if you're happy, Jarod. I've known you far too long."

Jarod gave a half smile. This time, when he pulled himself out of Parker's lap, she let him sit up, but she wrapped her arms around him from the back, not willing to break contact with him. She settled her chin on his shoulder.

"Of course, Sydney. Ms. Parker speaks for us both."

Broots finally spoke again, "B-but, I don't understand. W-what happened? W-what's going on?"

"You've got eyes, you know," Ms. Parker said, a bit annoyed.

"W-what? I don't…what?"

"Broots, let me spell it out for you, Jarod and I are together now," Ms. Parker told the stunned man.

"H-how?"

"Broots, you've got a daughter, I'm sure you know how these things happen," she nestled her chin in closer to Jarod's neck and, for the first time, Broots and Sydney noticed the little pink spots each had on their necks.

Sydney hid his further amusement behind a blank face.

Broots blushed, "S-still. I-it's you and J-Jarod. We've been chasing him for the last five years and now you're…I don't understand. Did the Centre…What's…I don't…How?"

"Broots, if life were meant to make sense, the Centre never would have existed." Ms. Parker replied blandly.

"Don't worry, Broots, no one's been brainwashed or anything, Parker and I just came to an understanding. It certainly took us long enough." Jarod stated to the stunned man

"Mmm, too long," Ms. Parker kissed his neck softly.

Broots blushed again and Ms. Parker raised her head back up and stared at him. "Shut your mouth Broots, it can't possibly be that strange."

"Oh yes it can."

Ms. Parker just glared at him and he stepped back a little. He didn't want to get Ms. Parker angry. He tried to change the subject, "Do you know why we're in here yet?"

"Yes, Jarod, did you set this up?" Sydney asked.

"No, I thought the Centre did."

"We don't know if they did or not. Did you know that this building belonged to the Centre?" Broots had finally controlled his stutter.

"What?!" Ms. Parker and Jarod answered simultaneously as they both tensed.

Suddenly, Jarod's laptop let out a loud beep. The decryption was finished.

Author's Note: Hey, thanks for pointing out my typo, LadyNiko. I found it, but I don't feel like changing it, just so that this story can be flawed because flaws are beautiful…in their own way. I'm sure there are plenty because my fingers can't keep up with my head sometimes. By the way, "here" is a noun because it's a place. Did you guys read my disclaimer for this chapter? You really have to read it with the Abominable as Sasquatch, it's so funny! Sigh, maybe it's just me.

I was gonna leave this chapter off right when Broots stumbled in and found Ms. Parker and Jarod, but then the chapter seemed too short. Besides, I wanted to write more, not that I haven't been a chapter ahead of posting before, but I had special requests to make this chapter longer. By the way, Gina, I'm gonna make you sit down and send me a review for this! So be ready! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm coming closer to an explanation…I guess…I may drag it out some more, it depends. Send me some more ideas! I'm absorbing everything everybody says and mixing it all together to form one super duper extra big plot…I hope, otherwise, my brain's just turning it into one of Broots' thought smoothies (obscure reference to Chapter 3)…hmm. Please Review!!! Luv Ya All! Buh Bye!


	7. Parker and Pez Head

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. 

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: Hey, thanks for all the great ideas! I'm definitely gonna use some of them. Watch closely to see if yours comes up… in other words, the identity of CJP

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 7

****

Parker and Pez Head

"W-what was that noise?" Broots jumped at the beep of Jarod's laptop.

"My laptop, I was sent an e-mail and it's been decrypting it." Jarod's face had clouded over at the thought that he had willingly entered a Centre facility without knowing it. He had walked into a trap…and now Ms. Parker was caught in it too.

"Thank god. I though it was some sort of bomb or something."

"If it was a bomb you'd be dead already. How do you know this building is owned by the Centre?" Ms. Parker bit out with equal parts of anger and shock present in her voice. Her grasp around Jarod had tightened and she could feel how his muscles tensed at the thought of the Centre. They'd kill her for sure if they found out she was sleeping with their prized lab rat…especially without her father around to stop them, not that he would have…he probably cared more about Jarod than her. If you could call what he felt for Jarod caring, it was more like protecting an investment.

"We found a letterhead printed with this address and the Centre logo on it in the security office," Sydney answered.

"Bastards," Ms. Parker muttered under her breath, then she turned a harsh tone back to Sydney, "What else did you find? Why have they locked us in here? What's their big deluded idea this time?"

"Broots couldn't find anything. Though, we were also sent an e-mail, that's how we found you. Unfortunately, it also got all of us locked in here, we can't go back the way we came, the doors only unlock from one side."

"How completely covertly like the Centre; lock us in without an escape and wait until we all go stark raving mad." Ms. Parker said coldly.

"You don't look stark raving mad to me. In fact, you're practically glowing." Sydney replied calmly.

Ms. Parker's cheeks colored faintly, "Certain things will do that to you."

"So, I take it you haven't actually investigated if there was another way to get out of here or not."

"Some of us were a bit more…occupied." Ms. Parker stated bluntly.

"More occupied than finding out how to get out of a lockbox? It doesn't sound much like you Ms. Parker," Broots averted his eyes, expecting Ms. Parker to yell angrily at him.

"Well, Broots, there's a hell of a lot about me that you don't know," There was not one hint of anger in her voice and Broots looked even more shocked. What had happened to the Parker he knew? What happened to "shooting the Pretender's genius ass?" It was almost too shocking of a change for him to believe it even happened…maybe he was actually unconscious in the hallway because a grizzly bear had whacked him upside the head…no, that was even more absurd. Just to make sure, he pinched himself…yep, he was definitely awake, and now he was in pain too.

"Broots, if you're wincing at the thought of me and Jarod, I suggest you have your eyes permanently blinded because he's not going anywhere and as long as we're stuck in here, I'm not leaving his side."

"A-actually, I was just pinching myself t-to…" he stopped because Ms. Parker was giving him a look that could kill, "make sure I was awake," he finished, mumbling quietly.

Jarod grabbed one of Ms. Parker's hands from around his chest and got up off of the bed, pulling her up with him, "Let's read the e-mail. Maybe whoever helped you two get in here will help all of us get out…before the Centre does any bloodshedding…" he finished bitterly.

Ms. Parker and Jarod held hands as they walked over to the laptop. Sydney noticed how they wouldn't let go of each other. It showed the fear that still lingered in each of them regarding the abandonment they'd felt for most of their lives. He was going to warn them that such attachments weren't safe and had serious psychological implications, but his old romantic heart melted at the sight. If only he had gotten to have that with Michelle…if only…

Sydney and Broots followed Jarod and Ms. Parker to the laptop. Jarod pulled up the e-mail. They all leaned in to read it:

Trapped in a box, with unconventional locks, the normal are driven to madness.

The truest hearts fear, but the lovers don't hear, they're too lost in each other. 

Who locked the box? Have you heard the talks? It's all part of the plan.

Listen closely to the voices, It's time to make your choices, does it end or begin?

Love or power? Now's not the time to cower, Does it end or begin?

CJP

"CJP, that's the same person that sent us the e-mail that got us in here." Broots told Jarod and Ms. Parker, "Do you know who it is?"

"Those are my mother's initials," Ms. Parker stated awkwardly, "How's that possible?"

"It's not likely. Besides, CJ is Angelo's screen name." Jarod answered her.

"But what's the P for?"

"Pal? Panda? Pork? Pigeon? Pie?" Broots began rambling of words that started with P.

As usual, Sydney cut him off, "I don't think it's so important as to who sent it but more what it is that it says."

They all examined it again. Jarod interpreted it quickly, "We're all trapped in this warehouse, but the locks aren't the usual kind, they're sealed doors. Lovers would imply…" he took a little gulp of air and glanced at Parker, who stared gravely back at him, then continued, "Talks must be the plans for locking us in here, whoever sent this is telling us that they overheard people talking about it. Voices must mean Parker's Inner Sense."

"But, what's the nonsense about does it end or begin?" Broots asked.

"I don't know," Jarod answered with a sigh.

"I do," Ms. Parker answered, "It's meant for me. Does it end or begin…CJP wants to know if I'm going to pick Jarod or the Centre."

"Picked," Jarod corrected. Parker had already made the choice. 

She bit her lip and smiled at him at the same time, then repeated what he'd said, "Picked."

Sydney's eyes lit up, "Did you really?"

"What'd you think Syd? I was gonna stay in that madhouse for the rest of my life?"

"Yes." Sydney stated a bit to quickly. He covered it just as quickly though, "I didn't want you to, but it certainly seemed…"

"Appearances can be deceiving," Ms. Parker answered.

"Apparently," Broots mumbled. He was obviously still appalled at the idea of Jarod and Ms. Parker.

"You'll get over it Broots," she then leaned over and kissed Jarod softly.

"Oh, I don't want to see you do that," Broots turned his head away and Ms. Parker and Jarod laughed at him.

"Don't worry Broots, you won't have to be around us," Jarod told him

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's getting late and I should assume you'd like to get some sleep," he turned his glance toward Parker and smiled slyly, "I know I would." Then he turned his attention back to Broots and Sydney, "Follow me, I did investigate enough to find two other suitable sleeping places in the building." He was climbing up the stairs when he stopped, "Wait, I suppose we should eat first, I'm ravenous."

There were two boxes of Macaroni and cheese in the cupboard that had previously housed the soup, so that's what they ate. The milk in the fridge had come in handy after all. However, there was no butter, so the meal was a bit bland, until Jarod pulled out his can of spray cheese and covered the noodles in it.

"Ugh, how can you eat that?" Ms. Parker laughed at the mess. 

"Like this," he took a huge mouthful and smiled happily as he chewed.

"Whatever."

"Really, try it," Jarod said and sprayed the artificial cheese on her bowl of noodles before she could answer.

"Jarod!" she whimpered.

He just stared at her. Finally, she gave in and took a bite meekly. She tried to conceal a small grin, it actually wasn't that bad.

"Ah hah! I was right, admit it!" he saw right through Ms. Parker's cover.

"Fine, you were right."

They smiled at each other.

Sydney just watched contentedly, sitting at a table together eating, they felt like a real family.

Broots tapped Jarod on the shoulder, interrupting his little staring contest with Ms. Parker. "Jarod, could I have some?"

"Oh, sure," he handed Broots the bottle and returned to staring at Ms. Parker while gulping down his pasta.

When they had finished, they put the dishes in the sink. Everyone was too tired to bother with washing them. Jarod took Sydney and Broots to their accommodations, a room which appeared to have been an infirmary for the workers. The beds were poorly padded, but Broots and Sydney were too wiped out to mind. Jarod wished them pleasant dreams and left them after pointing out where the infirmary's bathroom was.

Ms. Parker had tagged along at first, but then stepped into another room without anyone noticing. Jarod realized she wasn't there and went back down to their bed, assuming that's probably where she had gone to. He didn't see her, so he went to the kitchen, perhaps she had decided to do the dishes after all…though, dishes were a very un-Parker-like activity. She wasn't in the kitchen. He wondered where she'd gone to. Then he saw her standing in front of the stairwell in a red satin dress. It was tightly fitted and accentuated every curve of her body. Her hair was tied up in chopsticks.

"Look what I found," she smiled softly, "This must be what they shipped."

"Parker, you're incredible," Jarod said as he walked toward her.

"Not so fast Wonder Boy, here," she tossed him a tuxedo she'd found. It even had a little bowtie.

"Parker, what's this for?"

"A proper lady deserves to be escorted by a proper gentleman."

"Escorted where?"

"Here," she walked backwards toward an open space on the warehouse floor, never breaking eye contact with him, "Come dance with me."

Jarod narrowed his eyes, considering it. It didn't take him long, why on earth wouldn't he want to dance with Parker? He put the tuxedo on hastily over his boxers after he'd pulled his shirt off, and walked over to Parker. "May I have this dance?"

"I don't know, sailor, what are your intentions?" Ms. Parker said, acting coquettish

"The worst kind," he shook his head sadly.

"Sounds okay to me," she whispered seductively, losing her whole naivete act.

He took her hand and pulled her close, sliding his other arm around her waste.

"You know, we're not wearing any shoes," Jarod commented

They both looked down and Jarod noticed how beautifully slender her feet were and how nice the red polish on her toes brought out the paleness of her skin.

"Doesn't matter to me," she replied.

They stared back up and into each other's eyes. Then, Jarod suddenly spun her out and pulled her back to him. Several wisps of her hair fell out of the chopsticks. "What was that for?" her pulse raced a little.

"You're even prettier when you're a little flushed," he answered, his own pulse racing at the sight of her, slightly disheveled.

She leaned forward and met him in a passionate kiss.

They pulled back and Jarod dropped the hand that he was holding, and moved his fingers over to her throat to feel her pulse.

She did the same with her free hand.

Jarod started backing them over toward the bed in little waltzing circles.

When they were closer, the arm around her waste slid up her back and tugged lightly on the dress' zipper, he slid it all the way down and his hand moved onto her warm flesh.

"Jarod," Ms. Parker whispered in his ear, "Broots and Sydney are upstairs."

"Do you want to stop?"

"Mmm, no," she answered as his hand caressed her back, "but…"

"Don't worry, their room is far away, they have their own bathroom and everything. Besides, they haven't slept since you got here, they're wiped out."

"Mmm…okay." She slid his tuxedo jacket off, letting it fall to the floor. They twirled over it as Jarod led them in another waltzing circle. She kissed his ear as she unbuttoned the shirt, and untied the bowtie.

They had made it to the bed, and Jarod pulled lightly on the front of Ms. Parker's dress, it slid off easily. His pants and boxers followed it to the floor.

Jarod reached up and pulled the chopsticks out of Ms. Parker's hair, it spilled down in waves around her shoulders.

He lowered them to the bed and Ms. Parker whispered to him, "Jarod, there's this song with a line in it that says, '…baby kiss me like a drug, like a respirator…' would you kiss me that way?"

He answered by kissing her long and hard, causing her pulse to race even faster, her toes curled as the lack of oxygen swept through her. And then, he released her.

"That's…just…like it." She managed to get out softly. They were both breathing ragged, and lay there staring at each other.

After Jarod caught his breath a little, he spoke, "Would you kiss me like there's no tomorrow?"

"Oh, but there is tomorrow…and the day after…and the day after."

Tomorrow and forever, really. But, they already knew that. They could feel it; it was a part of them. It raced through their blood like drugs and oxygen, feeding their hearts and bodies. Drugs and oxygen…that's what they were for each other.

They made love silently as their hearts beat fast enough to purr. And, again, they slept close together in each other's arms, Pez Head and Parker.

****

The Next Morning

Broots tossed in his sleep and suddenly woke up. He rubbed his eyes, trying to figure out where he was before realizing he was in the hard metal bed of the infirmary of the warehouse. He groaned as he pulled himself up; he felt like he'd slept on a rock. It felt like his spine was curled into the shape of a shrimp…did shrimp have spines?…No, he remembered that shrimps had exoskeletons. Then he was really sad for a moment, who really wanted to remember that? He'd really have to find a new hobby…perhaps fishing would be good…though he was currently having sympathy pains for the little curled fishes.

Sydney interrupted his thoughts as he stepped out of the bathroom, "Good morning, Broots. Did you sleep well?"

"How can you sleep well when you've been layed out on a stone slab?" Broots asked rhetorically.

"That bad?"

"What, your bed was more comfortable?"

"I've gotten used to sleeping on hard surfaces…it comes with the territory, there's nothing soft and cushy at the Centre."

"Yah, it wouldn't hurt them to have a soft couch or something. Have you sat on that couch of yours? It feels like a board."

"Hmm, actually, I've slept quite well on that couch."

Broots shrugged at the older man, "If you ask me, it's not something I'd like to get accustomed to."

"Understandable," Ms. Parker said from the doorway. 

She and Jarod had woken up earlier so they could get dressed before they got caught by Sydney and Broots. She was currently wearing a plain navy blue T-shirt and a pair of jeans she had found last night with the dress and tuxedo.

"M-Ms. Parker, I've never seen you in jeans before," Broots was shocked by how layed back it made her look.

"Don't get used to it, I'm not a jeans kind of girl. Jeans don't show enough cuves."

"Oh, I don't know, I think they show planty of…curves," Jarod said as he came up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"What do you know?" Ms. Parker said smugly, with an undertone of laughter

"Haven't you heard, Parker? I'm a genius, I know everything."

"I vaguely remember hearing that…what's your name again?"

"I believe my name, currently, is Pez Head."

"Pez Head," she mocked him, and then laughed, pulling his hands down from her shoulders and wrapping his arms around her.

Broots just shook his head and turned away from them, fumbling his way toward the bathroom.

Sydney moved out of Broots' way and toward Ms. Parker and Jarod, "What's the plan now?"

Jarod pulled his eyes from Parker's and looked over at Sydney, "We search every inch of this place and find a way to get out…before the Centre comes."

"The Centre's already here," Lyle's voice sounded from a few feet down the hallway, "Congratulations on getting caught, it makes it so much easier to hall your asses back to the Centre."

Author's Note: The line "…baby kiss me like a drug, like a respirator…" is from Aimee Mann's "It's Not" which really has very little to do with Parker and Jarod in many ways…but so much in others…though, technically, fitting to this time frame, the song hadn't been recorded yet. It's really not important except that I think the line is extremely romantic. But, that's just me and I'm crazy. 

Okay, I swear, I'm gonna get to the story of why they're in here soon…I just keep getting sidetracked because Parker and Jarod are so sweet together. Thanks for all of the suggestions, everybody! I think you can tell I decided CJP was Angelo, so thanks to Phenyx, Nans, and Pez7701 for the idea…what does the P stand for? That's my little mystery now…I'm deciding. Besides, did you notice that J and P is Jarod and Parker, so maybe what I'm really looking for is: what does C stand for? Any ideas are greatly appreciated, so send them right along. Oh, hey, while I'm at it, another question from IOTH, when they're reading over the scrolls at the end and it gets to "a boy named Jarod," did you notice how his name is followed by a w? What does it say? My best guess is that it says, "a boy named Jarod will…" What do you guys think? Please Review!!! More soon. Luv Ya All! Buh Bye!


	8. The Good Side of the Fight

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. I don't have the rights to Candyland or Bingo…does anyone actually own Bingo? I don't own "Hey Diddle Diddle," "Hickory Dickory Dock," "The Old Woman Who Lived In a Shoe," or "Winkin Blinkin, and Nod" either. C'est la vie! Bon Soir!

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: Okay, we're finally gonna get somewhere in this story, Yay! Not that I minded lingering in the world of uninterrupted bliss for Parker and Jarod, but seriously, if I kept it up, I'd have to start charging pay per view…you know what I'm getting at…Anyway, read on!

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 8

****

The Good Side of the Fight

"Lyle," Jarod said spitefully, without turning around to face his tormentor.

"Yes, the devil himself come to visit you from the Centre…oh wait, I think it's more familiarly considered hell by you. Time to come home, Jarod. Turn around."

Lyle couldn't see Ms. Parker from where he was standing; she was concealed behind the doorway. In truth, he had no idea she was anywhere nearby because he had only heard Jarod and Sydney's voices when he had happened upon the little group.

In an effort to keep her from being found, Jarod unwrapped his arms from Ms. Parker and held them up in the air as he backed away and turned to face Lyle. 

Ms. Parker slid farther into the room in case Lyle came closer to the doorway. It wouldn't do any good for him to catch her; she couldn't help them if he did. She mouthed to Sydney, "Do you have a gun?"

Unfortunately, he mouthed back, "no."

Her mind started running through what options she had given the current situation…the pretender gene in her was good for something after all.

Lyle walked closer to Jarod, "Sydney, get out here. I know you're in there and this time nothing's going to keep you from the severe consequences that helping your former protegee are going to cause to fall upon you."

Sydney held his arms up and moved to exit the room, casting a sidelong glance to Ms. Parker before disappearing into the hallway to stand beside Jarod. He felt oddly proud in doing so, as if, at last, he was truly standing on the good side of the fight.

Lyle moved even closer to the pair, "Well well, Houdini, what does it feel like when you can't disappear and your assistant's caught helping you pull the skin over everybody's eyes?"

"Pretty good actually, considering I've still got people I can trust. Tell me, Lyle, who can you trust? Do you really think dragging us back to the Centre will improve your standing with Raines or the Triumverate? They could care less if you were dead or alive, so long as they've got me, they think their troubles are over. You're not worth a thing to them," Jarod did not hide his disdain for Lyle as he spoke.

"Shut your pie hole. I don't give a damn what they think, I'm doing this for myself. If I bring you back, I've got a bargaining chip, I've got the power."

"It's the power that's corrupted you, Lyle. Do you think your mother would have wanted this for you?"

Broots had come out of the bathroom and Ms. Parker slapped her hand over his mouth. Broots eyes widened. He had no idea what was going on until Lyle's voice reached his ears.

Ms. Parker nodded at him as a way of asking if he could keep quiet. He nodded back and Ms. Parker dropped her hand, moving toward a door on the other end of the room…perhaps she could get downstairs and grab her gun from where she'd thrown it two days ago and get back up to the infirmary without getting caught.

"Shut the hell up, Jarod. That little trick of yours is no good on me. Unlike my sister, I could care less what Catherine Parker would think of me. Speaking of dear old sis, where is she? Sam told me she was locked in here, where have you stashed her?"

"What, are you actually concerned about her welfare?"

"I could care less, honestly. Ms. Parker's useless, she's too emotionally involved in this little game. Unfortunately, Raines doesn't feel the same and expects her back. So, where is she?"

"Honestly, Lyle, I have no idea."

"You're lying, Sam told me she was here."

Sydney finally piped in, "Is Sam alright?"

Lyle gave a soft chuckle, "Dr. Spock, always worried about the welfare of others. Yah, Sam's just fine, if you don't count a severe hangover," he turned his attention back to Jarod, "What'd you slip him?"

"I haven't seen Sam, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Stop playing games, Jarod, where's Parker?"

"Oh, but Lyle, this is a game, all of it. You yourself said that Parker was too emotionally involved in the game, game being the key word. I love how you pass my life off under the title of something which includes Candyland and Bingo."

"Ah, Candyland, and you're the sweet reward. Now, I'll ask you again, where's Parker?"

Ms. Parker had made it back by now and slid up behind Lyle, "Nice of you to be so concerned about me, brother," she clicked the safety off of her gun, "Drop it."

Lyle made a cocky grin at Jarod and Sydney and dropped his gun to the floor before turning to face Ms. Parker. "Protecting the lab rat, are we now sis?"

"Let's get one thing straight, he may be a lab rat, but he's my lab rat, and no one but him gets to call me Parker."

"What're you sleeping with him?" Lyle's eyes narrowed as he realized that really was the case, "You really are. Well this is an interesting turn of events, wait 'til I tell Raines."

"That's if you get to see the bald headed wheeze bag, give me one good reason why I shouldn't shoot you right now?"

"I'm your brother?" Lyle tried lamely.

"And that mattered so much to you before? Don't think I didn't overhear your entire conversation because I did. There's no way out of this one Lyle."

"Sure there is," he made a step toward her and her finger twitched on the trigger, letting out one shot.

Jarod stepped up behind Lyle quickly and gave him a strong thump on the back of his head causing him to pass out and crumple onto the floor before the bullet managed to hit either of them. Ms. Parker's gun was still raised in the shock of what had just happened. "Parker, you can drop the gun now," he said slightly worried.

Ms. Parker moved her arm down slowly and the gun slipped from her grasp, clattering to the ground, she sank down to her knees slowly.

"Sydney, take care of Lyle," Jarod said to the older man, without even looking at him, his eyes were fixed on Ms. Parker. He ran to her side quickly and pulled her close.

"Jarod, I almost killed him." She managed through the shock.

"Shh it's okay." He rocked her in his arms.

"But, I would have if you…if you hadn't…"

"Shh. Just rest a minute, okay."

She clung to him then, burying her face in his arms.

He just sat there and rocked her back and forth.

Sydney called for Broots to come and help him and, together, they lifted Lyle and carried him into the infirmary room. Broots found some rope in a supply closet and vaguely wondered why rope would be in a supply closet in an infirmary, but decided that inside of a Centre building, nothing really had to make any sense. He handed it to Sydney and they began to tie Lyle down to one of the very uncomfortable infirmary beds.

Out in the hall, Ms. Parker was starting to gather herself back together and turned her head up from Jarod's arms to look at him. He spoke first, "Are you a little better now?"

"Jarod, I just shot at my own brother."

"Parker, it was self defense, any court of law would agree with you on this."

"But if you hadn't stopped it, I would have killed him."

"Your gun wasn't aiming anywhere that would have hurt him badly, the bullet just whizzed past his arm, he would have been fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Don't worry, it's okay. Everything is going to be okay. We just need to find out if anybody else at the Centre knows we're here and how Lyle got in. It'll be okay, we just need to teach you to think without your gun. Okay?"

Ms. Parker gave a soft nod and allowed Jarod to pull her to her feet and hug her close.

"They'll all know now, Jarod. Everyone at the Centre will know about us."

Jarod held her back and tilted her face up to his, resting his forehead on hers so that they looked deeply into each other's eyes. "That doesn't change anything, you chose me, remember?"

Again, she nodded softly. Then, she kissed Jarod gently. "Now that I have you, I don't know what I'd do without you…or how I've lived without you for so long."

"You've always been too stubborn to accept someone else's help, that's how you lived without me. Isn't it better to deal with it when you're wrapped in someone else's arms?"

"Yes," a small smile spread across her lips.

"Good, now come on," he let go of her and headed toward the door of the infirmary, "You wouldn't want to miss the festivities we're going to have while we get information out of Lyle."

****

Back at the Centre, Raines' Office

Raines and Willie were staring intently at his computer screen as the latest footage of Ms. Parker and Jarod played with a ten-minute satellite delay. Raines' face, as usual, showed no emotion other than that every few minutes, his eyes would widen slightly, as if that were the only facial expression he knew. To say that he was a wide-eyed puppy would be a sad misstatement because his eyes were far too cold and unfeeling to resemble those of a puppy. Instead, he most resembled a skeleton with skin barely stretched over his bones and icy blue eyes which widened as anger spread over him…it was a rather revolting sight. Even Willie tensed at the sight of it, despite the fact that he had been Raines' personal sweeper for a long time and had encountered the expression often enough to wish he'd never have to see it again. Willie wasn't really sure why he wanted to play evil lackey to Raines other than that it paid well…and he got to inflict pain on people…he supposed that made it worth it to have to bare witness to the emphysema ridden ghoul everyday.

When Ms. Parker and Jarod had retreated into the infirmary, Raines turned off the satellite feed and growled to Willie, "Tell them to prepare the jet, it's time to drop in and break up this little love fest, amusing as it's been. Call Roc as well, his services may be necessary, as of this moment, I'm issuing a hit on Ms. Parker. Prepare the cleaners to follow after my little visit. I'm going to personally apprehend Jarod this time."

Willie exited Raines' office and Raines growled to himself, "There's no escaping this time, Jarod. We'll even make it all the more painful for you by taking out your pathetic cohorts…specifically Ms. Parker. That will teach her to interfere with out lab experiments." A wicked smile managed to spread across his lips curling them slightly, though, to the untrained eye, it would merely have appeared as though he were in pain.

****

The Warehouse, The Infirmary

Lyle was awakened as cold water splashed on his face.

"Well, good morning sunshine," Jarod mocked.

"Yes, the sun is shining, it's a beautiful day, can't you here the damned birds chirping," Ms. Parker chimed in sarcastically.

Lyle pulled against the ropes that restrained him, "Like I said, this is an interesting turn of events. Tell me, Jarod, is she good."

Ms. Parker slapped him across the face and blood trickled from his nose, "You are the most revolting creature on the face of the- no, you know what, I take that back, even you aren't as bad as that bastard Raines."

"Hah, it won't matter what you think soon enough. Raines is probably on his way here right now. I sure hope Jarod was worth it, Parker, Raines has probably put a hit on you now that he's seen who your loyalties truly lie with." Lyle received another slap.

"I believe I warned you that Jarod's the only one who gets to call me Parker now."

Lyle turned his eyes on Jarod, "Are you going to let her do this to me Jarod? I know you, you can't bare to see another human being suffering."

"You're forgetting Lyle, you aren't human, humans have hearts, something I haven't seen one trace of in you. Besides, Parker can do whatever the hell she wants, I'm not her keeper."

"You hear that Lyle? I can do whatever the hell I want, amazing how the Centre never gave me that much freedom. Now," she grabbed his wrist and began to twist it, "Who exactly set this little plan up?"

"Hey diddle diddle, the OW!" Parker twisted his wrist tighter, "cat and the fiddle, OW!!" The tendons in his wrist felt as though they were all starting to tear and the bones felt as though they were one hundredth of a turn away from snapping, but Lyle wouldn't give in. "the cow jumped over the moon, MOTHER OF GOD!" the bones in his wrist let out a sickening crack." Lyle winced but he'd never break this easily…even if his bones did. "the little dog laughed to see such a sight and the dish ran away with the spoon."

"Lyle, start talking or I'm gonna start working on that new thumb of yours," Parker hissed menacingly.

"Hickory dickory dock, OKAY OKAY," he gave in as the relatively new attachments in his thumb stretched taut and close to the breaking point. He really hoped Raines didn't have this room covered by cameras as well. "Raines set this up to see if you would remain loyal to the Centre or turn to Jarod. He figured after that trip to Carthis, you trusted Jarod the most because he told you the truth…despite what you both believe the truth is. He sent Jarod that article about the drug bust. This facility has been with the Centre since the 1970s, you'd think Wonder Boy over here would have thought to check that out."

"And…" Ms. Parker gritted her teeth.

"He's had surveillance running this entire time. I didn't know until after I spoke with Sam, that's the honest truth."

"How'd you get in here?" Jarod joined in the conversation now.

"Tricks of the trade. Magicians don't reveal their secrets, Jarod, you know that." Lyle began laughing wickedly.

Parker walked away and motioned for Jarod to follow, "Monkey boy's whacked, I don't know how much of that story he just made up. Though, it seems realistic enough. Let's see what Broots and Syd have pulled up." She exited the room.

Jarod took one last look at Lyle before following. Lyle was now going on and on about the little old woman who lived in a shoe and Winkin, Blinkin, and Nod.

He caught up with Parker halfway to the staircase, but not before admiring how nice her hips swayed from behind… "and she thought jeans didn't show enough curves," he thought to himself. "Parker," he reached out for her arm, stopping her.

"Yes, Jarod." She turned to face him.

He pulled her mouth to his and kissed her hard.

"What…was that for?" She asked, a little short of breath.

"Hoping you wear jeans more often," he grinned playfully.

"That depends, Pez Head."

"On what?"

"Whether or not you wear jeans more often," this time she kissed him. She broke the kiss and started walking away again, making sure to add an extra little sway as she did.

Jarod admired for a moment, and then took off following her to the laptop where Broots and Sydney were looking for whatever they could find.

"Broots, what have you found?" Ms. Parker asked.

"Well, there's a small order I found with Raines name attached to it regarding something called 'Immure.' "

"Immure: to confine," Jarod muttered, "what does it say?"

"It just says 'Project Immure underway. Subjects under surveillance.' " Broots explained.

"There's nothing else?" Ms. Parker said impatiently.

"I'm sorry Ms. Parker, but whatever project Immure is, that's all we've got on it."

"Broots, Immure is obviously this, now keep looking. Jarod and I will go find something to eat." Ms. Parker strode toward the kitchen with Jarod following closely.

Before Jarod and Ms. Parker got there, however, the door Ms. Parker had first entered the building from slid open and in walked Raines, wheeling his oxygen tank, with Willie and all of his usual entourage.

"Come now, children, you don't look happy to see me," he said coldly, again with that wicked smile where his lips curled up but he seemed more in pain, "that's not anyway to treat daddy after everything he's done for you."

Author's Note: Okay, the story's finally moving…I hope. We'll see how long it takes me to resolve everything. This Author's Note must contain a super duper special thank you to Pez7701 for the overall plotline of this chapter. I loved your suggestion of Raines' using this as a way to test Parker's loyalty, so I've used it. Credit must be given where it's due, so thanks so much!!! I hope Lyle wasn't too insane…it's hard to write for him. I really need a third movie over here!!! Doesn't TNT understand the depths of my despair? Every week longer that passes since IOTH aired, my hope dies out more…It's been a year people! A whole year! What are they doing over there? Anyway, I need some more reviews guys! I know that in comparison with some of the stories on this site mine = yawn boring, but when you finish reading all of those other really great stories, just pop on over here and drop a review!!! Please?!!! Love Ya All!


	9. Daddy's Home, Let's Blow His Top

Disclaimer: Pretender = not mine. The characters aren't mine, the actors aren't mine, the title isn't mine, the sets aren't mine, the production companies aren't mine, anything having to do with the show is not mine. Sigh…tell me if there's something else that I don't own because I'm feeling really sad and that will just be the final nail in the coffin. Maybe someday, I'll buy the show and then it really will be mine…someday. 

Summary: Jarod decides to end the chase, but he and Ms. Parker end up locked inside of a warehouse and…well, there's some arguing, some anger, and maybe something more.

Author's Note: And now the fun begins, Raines finally showed up, yay! Everybody knows how much his presence is NOT appreciated. We'll just see where this chapter goes because I don't even know yet, Cheerio! (Wonderful British saying, don't you think?) Bonne Chance! (Good luck in French, a most wonderful language) Love Ya! (Standard Bec-Bec line from not-so-sunny-right-now California)

Trapped In A Box

By Bec-Bec

Chapter 9

****

Daddy's Home, Let's Blow His Top

"What have you ever done for us?" Jarod said, a dark expression hardening the features of his face. He was already in the process of SIMming how to get out of this newest predicament.

Raines ignored Jarod's comment, focusing his cold gaze on Ms. Parker, "This has all made for very interesting watching."

Ms. Parker answered with her usual disdain toward Raines, "Oh I'm sure it was a wonderful Friday night rental. Did you enjoy the view? Have a nice bag of popcorn?"

Raines pained smile was replaced by his only other facial expression, coldness. "Tell me, Ms. Parker, how long have your alliances been with the Centre's botched Lab Rat?"

"That's none of your business."

"My children are my business."

"We are not your children, you sick bastard," Ms. Parker said through gritted teeth. She wanted to run up the stairs and punch his smug face in, but Willie would have had a gun trained on her in a second and she didn't want to risk anything without a signal from Jarod. She could tell he was SIMming how they would get out, she'd wait until he had found the safest way to exit this dilemma.

"I created you, both of you. You have no control over your miserable existences. Everything that's happened has been a product of my exquisite planning. Look at you two, the Centre's left over science project and the Chairmen's useless emotional daughter, I hope you enjoyed your time together, you won't be getting anymore."

In a bold action that surprised even him, Broots ran to the wall, grabbed a fire extinguisher, and managed to pop the top off of the pressurized container, causing it to fly through the air directly towards Raines face. 

Willie let off a shot in the chaos as he threw himself in front of the rocketing fire extinguisher. Jarod jumped protectively in the direction of Ms. Parker, knocking her to the floor and covering her body with his own to protect her against the gunshot.

Luckily, the shot was aimed too wildly and ended up soaring high, shattering the glass of an industrial lamp hanging from the ceiling of the warehouse and sending the fixture plummeting toward the floor. Jarod rolled himself and Ms. Parker out from under the path of where it would fall.

As the lamp crashed to the floor, Jarod looked down into Ms. Parker's face to make sure she was okay. 

Reading the look in his eyes, she merely nodded a response that she was okay.

Jarod pulled himself and Ms. Parker up from the floor and gestured for Sydney and Broots to follow him as he grabbed Ms. Parker's hand, closed up his laptop and seized his DSA case and duffel bag. They ran for the office that Broots and Sydney had entered the building through.

Once they were all inside of the office, Jarod put his things down and he and Broots flipped the desk in front of the door to buy themselves a little time.

"Jarod, there's no way out of here, what are you doing?" Sydney asked.

"Actually, this is the only way out," Jarod stated confidently.

Broots started to panic, his sudden adrenaline rush beginning to wane, "Oh my god, we're trapped. I can feel the room getting smaller already. I feel like I'm trapped in a pillbox…oh pills, I wish I had some right now, I'd knock myself out, hey, do you hear that knocking noise, noise it's so noisy…"

Broots' crazy ramble came to an end as Ms. Parker slapped Broots softly on the face, "Broots, get a hold of yourself. Now, shh, your obsessive rambling isn't going to get us out of here any faster and I'm sure it's not helping Jarod to concentrate."

"Okay," Broots mumbled.

Ms. Parker gave him a soft smile, "Thanks Broots. We couldn't have done it without you."

Jarod was about to chime in that they could have gotten out fine without Broots, given certain logistics, but why ruin the thought, it obviously made him feel better and calmed him down.

Ms. Parker turned her attention to Jarod, "So, how are we getting out of this one, Houdini?"

Jarod walked over to the door that locked only from the other side, "The doors."

"What? Jarod, they're locked."

"And I'm the number one locksmith," he gave her a cocky grin.

"How can you pick a lock that doesn't have a lock?" Ms. Parker raised one eyebrow skeptically.

"Simple," he turned his attention to Sydney, "Syd, can I have a credit card?"

"Sure," Sydney pulled out his wallet and handed Jarod a credit card.

Jarod began to slide it in the gap between the door and the frame and wiggle it around.

Broots mumbled almost unintelligibly, "I could have done that."

After a minute of maneuvering, the lock slid open, and Jarod stood up holding the door wide open, "After you." He handed the card to Broots, "You do the next one."

Broots nodded in acquiescence as he and Sydney moved through the door. Ms. Parker came up and stood in front of Jarod, letting the others get ahead a little.

"Thanks for saving me," she stared intently at him, letting him get lost in the beauty of her eyes.

"Thank me later," Jarod answered huskily. He tucked some of her hair behind her ear and was just about to kiss her when someone started thrashing against the barricaded door. "Come on." He pulled Ms. Parker by her arm, sending her down the stairs in front of him, before turning back just a moment to grab all of his things again. The door closed behind them and snapped back into place.

Broots just got the door open as they approached, and then they were back in the labyrinth.

Ms. Parker and Jarod walked down the hallway they had entered slowly, gazing into each of the rooms.

"What is it?" Ms. Parker asked in slight astonishment.

"We're not sure, but it resembles simulation sets," Sydney answered.

As they came in front of the living room set, Jarod was hit by a strange feeling of déjà vu. He had a feeling he'd been here before.

Ms. Parker saw the look come to his face and became worried, "What's wrong, Jarod?"

"I think I've been here before, "Jarod replied slowly, trying to grasp at the flashes of pictures that started to run through his head and place them in some synchronicity of the events from the past.

Sydney's brow furrowed, "Jarod, we never worked in this SIM lab before."

"No, but Raines and I did." The one picture that came through the clearest was an image of Raines smiling wickedly.

****

The Warehouse SIM Lab, 1979

Jarod was about nineteen years old and, despite his mature age, was desperately upset at the thought of the week he had to get through without Sydney. As he did every year, Sydney had left on a week's vacation. Jarod wouldn't have minded so much if it meant that he got a break as well, but, instead, it meant that he had to continue his simulations with Mr. Raines.

The particular simulation that Jarod was working on stunned and scared him…something about it was familiar to him…or maybe it was just the fact that Raines stared at him the entire time…and sometimes put the smoldering ends of his cigarettes against Jarod's flesh, burning little circles onto his body. 

With Jarod's build, he could have easily taken the older man. However, then he would have had to deal with the sweepers. Raines' sweepers, Thor and Gard, were ex-heavy weights and they could have crushed Jarod in seconds if need be. So, he was stuck complying to Raines every demand…even when his gut told him not to trust a thing the man said.

Supposedly, Jarod was simulating the kidnapping of a young girl, playing the part of the kidnaper. His job was to figure out how the girl was abducted without the girl's parents noticing and without making any noise.

He was given black clothing to wear, as well as a ski mask.

The simulation started off to the side of a room set up to resemble a living room. The first thing he was supposed to do was enter the house through a window, which had been set up along the left part of the set.

"I enter through the window along the west side of the house. It's late, everyone is asleep. I'm afraid the window may make a noise as I push it open, it's old and doesn't move easily. So, I work slow, easing it open. Before I climb through, I make sure I haven't left any footprints in the mud on the ground, it will be one of the first things the police would look for. I climb onto the window sill and wipe off my shoes to avoid tracking mud into the house." Jarod paused in his actions and turned toward Mr. Raines. "Are you sure the kidnapper wore these kinds of shoes? They'd be too noisy once he got into the house," he said as he looked down at the cleats they had given him to wear, obviously because of the mud.

"Jarod, those are exactly the shoes that the kidnaper wore. If he did it without making any noise, you can too. Continue the simulation," Raines said cruelly.

Jarod moved his mouth into a firm line as he gritted his teeth and then continued. "I slide through the window, leaving it open, and walk slowly toward the stairs. The carpet helps to cushion the noise from my shoes, but I walk slowly anyway. I make my way up the stairs and I enter the girl's room. Her bed is facing the window because she likes to wake up and look at the sky. She's restless, she knows something's about to happen. I walk over and place a hand over her mouth, my other arm grabs a hold of her wrists and lifts her from the bed. Her eyes are full of terror as she stares at me, but her scream can't be heard through my hand because it's too big over her small mouth." Jarod paused again. "How old is she? She's not really a little girl anymore. She looks like she's fourteen."

"Her age is unimportant, continue the simulation," Raines growled.

"She struggles in my hands, she's rather strong. I slap her across the face, I'll make her come easily. I must have slapped her too hard because she doesn't move. I check her pulse, she's okay. I lift her in my arms and exit the room. As I walk down the stairs I see how pretty she is and wonder why they want her. I wonder how such a girl could be so important to them. I'm actually worried about what they'll do to her. Maybe I shouldn't take her." Jarod stopped in his tracks. "Who wants her, Mr. Raines? What could they want to do with her?"

"That has nothing to do with this simulation, tell me how he manages to get out silently, still wearing the cleats, with this added weight." Mr. Raines eyes widened in anger. "If you stop again, we're going to have to take a trip to SL27," he hissed menacingly.

Jarod hated SL27, that's where Raines hurt him. He continued the simulation.

"I can't keep looking at her or I'll want to put her back. I throw her over my shoulder and carry her down the stairs and through the living room. It's slower this time. With her weight added, my footsteps are heavier and harder to muffle in the carpet. It takes almost twenty minutes to reach the window. I'm worried about the amount of time it's taken, perhaps my rendezvous partner has left. I place the girl on the floor for a moment and pull out my walkie-talkie. I tell the person on the other end that I'm on my way. They must be there because I slip it back on my belt and pick up the girl again. I can't climb through the window with her, so I have to go first. Once I'm on the outside, I lean through to pull her with me. Only, my walkie-talkie gets stuck. I feel the resistance. I don't move, until I realize I can cut the walkie-talkie out of its loop on my belt. I move my arm slowly and pull out my pocketknife. I slice through the material and the walkie-talkie falls onto the carpet, silently. I think I hear a footstep, so I pull the girl through the window quickly, placing her on the ground, away from the mud, and close the window. I forget the walkie-talkie as I hurry to ease the window shut without making noise. I cover my tracks in the mud with some leaves that have gathered nearby. I pick the girl up again and we make it to the rendezvous point."

The SIM ended and the lights in the room came back on.

"Jarod, if he were to do this again, how could he manage to not leave the walkie-talkie behind?"

"Did he do it again, Mr. Raines?"

"That's irrelevant. If he were to do it again, how would he manage to not leave it behind," Raines repeated spitefully.

"He could put it on another part of his belt, though, it would be a hindrance if it was on the back of the belt and it can't be anywhere on the front because it will get caught again. He can't put it in a backpack because that would also make his travel harder. I'd suggest that he finds a way to make a smaller model that will fit easily into his back pocket."

Raines eyes lit up ever so slightly, "Good, tomorrow you will work on replicating this small walkie-talkie."

"Mr. Raines, why would someone want to steal young girls like this? Are they okay?"

"The girls' wellbeing is none of your concern."

"So, he did do it again. You said girls'."

Raines face tensed into a horrible despising look as he realized his mistake in speaking, "Forget about the girls."

"But I want to know if they're okay. Maybe we can help them."

"You already have Jarod, by giving us this simulation," Raines lied, he wasn't any good at it.

"I don't believe you, you're lying. We should help them, that's what I do I help people."

Raines was incensed at his point in time and had Thor and Gard carry Jarod away as he fought against them saying that he wanted to help the girls.

Just before they had pulled Jarod from the room, Raines turned to him and smiled wickedly, "You've already helped them, Jarod, they're just like you."

Jarod didn't understand and was pulled from the room before he could reply.

****

The labyrinth under the warehouse

Ms. Parker shook Jarod back into the present as his mind concluded it's journey through the past, "Jarod, are you okay?"

Jarod's mouth trembled and his eyes were full of tears that he wouldn't let fall, "They used me to kidnap children like me…"

Ms. Parker pulled Jarod to her and hugged him close, "Shh it's okay, it wasn't your fault."

Jarod wrapped his arms around her and let her run her fingers through his hair comfortingly. 

It had only taken him a little while to pull the event from the recesses of his mind. But, he could still feel that there was something more to the situation, that's what worried him the most. The little girl had looked so familiar. Then it hit him, in 1979, his sister was probably fourteen…what if he had helped them to kidnap Emily in the past.

"Oh my god," he whispered against Ms. Parker's arm, "I think I helped them kidnap Emily."

Author's Note: My mind is suddenly spinning through all of the directions I can take this story now. Thank God! I hate being stuck without ideas. Anyway, I hope the trip through the past worked okay, it's hard to make up a SIM. For all of you Parker and Jarod fans, don't worry, I've got more for them coming up. In other words, Gina don't kill me, more romance is on the way, I just have to keep the story moving before I slip back into the lovey dovey scenes. Thanks to everyone for reading I hope this new twist with Emily is interesting…I've got plans now. If you have any ideas to further the story along, I'd greatly appreciate hearing them. Thanks SO much for reading! Please send along a review!!! Reviews help so much! Love Ya All!!!


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